A Samurai's Pledge
by Tear of Light
Summary: Signum loves Shamal. Shamal loves Signum. But neither of them can admit their feelings to each other. Just when their friends and family try to help out, ghosts of the past return, revealing buried secrets which could tear them apart. AU. Sequel to Of Assassins, Samurai, and Magic. Signum x Shamal.
1. Sweet Dreams

**A Samurai's Pledge**

_**A/N**__: I present to you the sequel to Of Assassins, Samurai, and Magic! A Samurai's Pledge! Thanks to all who've read the prequel to this story. I hope you'll enjoy this one as much as the last one. Unlike the first story, this one will focus on Signum and Shamal. Fear not NanoFate fans, you'll see our favorite heroines from time to time too._

_I've tried to keep everyone as close as possible to their characters in the anime though I'm sure there will be a few OOC moments. Comments and reviews are much appreciated. Enjoy!_

_**Disclaimer**__: The characters and the worlds I write in do not belong to me. The stories that I write are intended for entertainment purposes. I do not make any money from them._

* * *

*** ~ Chapter 1: Sweet Dreams ~ ***

Shamal was a light sleeper. It was just something that came with being the Empress' head attendant and healer. The amount of things that happened in the Imperial Palace on a daily basis would astound most people if they knew. From stopping full out invasions of the country to settling petty disputes among the Upper Court's officials, no two days were alike.

So when the door to Shamal's room suddenly burst open on this particular morning, the sun only now starting to peek over the horizon, Shamal couldn't but think the worst. Were they being invaded? Was someone gravely wounded? Had Jail Scaglietti broken out of prison? Then Shamal's gaze fell on Signum, leaving the half asleep blonde wondering if she was still dreaming, delusional or if this was just plain wishful thinking finally delivering.

At this current moment, the Captain of the Samurai was garbed in nothing but a simple silk white robe with a purple hem. The robe's sleeves stopped just below the elbow and the length of the robe ended just above Signum's knee. It was tied together at the front by a purple silk belt. Long locks of pink hair draped across Signum's shoulders, reaching down to her mid back, making the Empress' head attendant swallow unconsciously. Shamal sucked in a breath. By the gods! Signum looked absolutely delectable right now! Shamal was tempted to kiss the pinkette silly right then and there. Then Signum locked eyes with her, and those thoughts were immediately forgotten.

"Shamal, I-"

Shamal was out of bed and halfway across the room in an instant. "Signum, what's wrong?"

Fear. That's what Shamal saw when Signum looked at her. Absolute horror and fear. Shamal paled at the thought of what could have made such a strong warrior tremble like this. Now within arm's reach, Shamal was shocked to see how poor Signum's health was. The samurai was terribly flushed and panting, something Shamal was pretty sure wasn't from the woman's dash into her bedroom. Sweat drizzled down the samurai's brow and cheek, Signum's shortness of breath concerning the head attendant especially.

"S-Shamal, I am sorry," Signum finally verbalized. The Captain of the Samurai lowered her gaze in both embarrassment and shame.

In her haste to escape her demonic pursuers, Signum had inadvertently escaped into Shamal's personal chambers. The samurai captain didn't mean to, to wake Shamal up in the wee hours of the morning and worry her so. But for the past few minutes, the only thing she could think about was hiding, and this was the first unlocked door she could find. Signum's head was spinning very badly right now, leaving her confused as to which part of the Imperial Palace she was in. That is, until now.

"I didn't mean to-"

Signum's words hitched in her throat.

Shamal silenced the samurai by cupping her cheek. Blue eyes widened and glazed over as the blonde stroked Signum's skin with her thumb. The Empress' attendant frowned. Signum was burning up! Shamal vaguely remembered yelling at the samurai a few days ago, when the stubborn pinkette came down with a nasty cold and almost collapsed while out on patrol because of it. Since then, Signum had been confined to the Imperial Palace under her orders, until she got better. For Signum to be running around in this condition, whatever it was that scared her had to be really bad.

"You're trembling, Signum."

Signum blinked. When had Shamal cupped her face with her other hand? The moment the blonde's hand touched her cheek, Signum lost all train of thought. All that filled her mind then was how soft Shamal's hands were and how brilliant the head attendant's violet eyes sparkled. Everything else just faded away into nothingness. Signum grabbed at Shamal's shoulders to steady herself.

"Shamal, I-"

"_Siiiiiiiiiiiiiiignuuuuummmmm~!"_ called a sing song voice through Shamal's bedroom door.

Signum jumped, her eyes widening as her head whipped towards Shamal's closed bedroom door. They had found her!

"Hayate...chan...?" Shamal murmured in surprise. She blinked at her door before looking at Signum. The samurai was absolutely stiff, horror written all over her face.

Shamal wanted to laugh like a mad woman.

Now it all made sense. Signum seeking refuge. The samurai's unusual fear (the pinkette wasn't afraid of anything). Signum's less than dressed state. How hadn't she put things together before now?

Today was Shamal's day off. By orders of the Empress, Shamal was to take this day off to rest and do whatever else she wanted, just as long as it wasn't related to the affairs of the Imperial Palace or anything involving healing. While initially hesitant about it, Shamal caved under Hayate's puppy dog look and took off the day as the Empress told her to. That left any healing related matters, which included Signum, to her apprentices.

"_Siiiiiiiiiiiiiiignuuuuummmmm~! Where are yooooooooooou?"_

Or in this case, to Hayate herself.

Signum cringed as Hayate's gleeful voice reverberated through Shamal's bedroom door. The samurai truly respected and loved her master, but it was during times like this she wished the brunette would just leave her alone. While she knew Hayate, and Rein for that matter, meant well, Hayate wasn't a very good healer. She was more of a dungeon master when it came to the arts of healing. Signum couldn't fathom why the Empress had such a fascination with wiping the sweat around her chest so much.

"_Siiiiiiiiiiiiiiignuuuuummmmm~! You can run, but you can't hide!"_

Shamal raised an eyebrow at the pinkette, her eyes twinkling with mirth. "I take it Hayate-chan is acting as my Deshi today?"

Signum wanted to die.

The samurai groaned in response to the blonde's question, hanging her head, causing Shamal to chuckle. A smile quickly stretched across the head attendant's face. Then Rein spoke up.

"_Hey,"_ Rein said. _"Do you think she's hiding inside one of these rooms?"_

Signum and Shamal looked at the door.

Hayate hummed. _"If she tried to, she wouldn't get far. There's only one room that I know of in this wing which isn't locked."_

A gasp. _"You think she ran into Shamal-san's room?"_

Signum and Shamal looked at each other.

"_Would you two give it up?"_ a third voice said, annoyance evident in their tone. It sounded like Agito. _"If my master wants to be alone, just leave her alone."_

"_Oh Agito," _Hayate said. _"Stop being a sour puss. It will only take a moment to check. And I'm sure Shamal wouldn't mind."_

Signum felt her heart drop the moment she heard footsteps approach Shamal's bedroom door. But before she could even react, Shamal grabbed her by the wrist and yanked her across the room.

* * *

"H-Hayate-sama?"

How did this happen?

"Ah, sorry Shamal," Hayate said. "I didn't mean to wake you."

How the head attendant managed it, Signum didn't know. All she knew was that in one instant, she and Shamal were by the bedroom door with Hayate, Rein and Agito closing in on the room. And in the next, Signum was in bed, with Shamal, hidden under the blankets, curled up firmly against the blonde's side. Due to their last second scramble, Signum ended up with her head resting on Shamal's stomach and her arm draped across Shamal's waist. She didn't dare move from her current position out of fear of being discovered.

"Is something wrong? Did someone get hurt?" There was an undercurrent of worry in Shamal's voice. It was all fake though.

The Empress' head attendant shifted slightly under Signum, beginning to sit up as if startled by Hayate's appearance. But Signum knew better. Shamal was far from surprised by the brunette's 'unexpected' visit. The arm around Signum's shoulders was evidence of that fact.

"Ile," Hayate answered immediately, to quell Shamal's supposed fears.

Signum envisioned the Empress waving her hands in the air dismissively at this point, despite not actually seeing it. Hayate was always expressive with her hands.

"Nothing is wrong. I just-"

As much as Signum tried to focus on the conversation happening literally above her head, the exhaustion and stress from her mini escape earlier this morning was finally catching up to her. That among other things.

The warmth coming from Shamal quickly relaxed the samurai, Signum finding her eyelids drooping more and more as the seconds ticked by. The blonde attendant also smelled of water lilies, like the ones out on the lake just behind the Imperial Palace, a scent which the samurai captain found quite enjoyable. Signum would never admit it out loud, but she really loved those lilies. They reminder her so much of Shamal. And as Signum drifted off for a much needed rest (she hadn't been sleeping well the past few days due to her cold), the last thing she remembered thinking was how nice it felt to have Shamal running a hand through her hair.

* * *

"You sure everything is alright?" Shamal questioned for the umpteenth time. At Hayate's behest, she remained in bed, with the covers up to her neck.

"I'm apologize for disturbing your rest, Shamal," Hayate said yet again. The brunette was rather miffed to have found no sign of Signum in Shamal's room, but didn't allow that to show on her face. Rein, on the other hand, looked very disappointed, but the small sprite said nothing on the matter. Agito looked at the mischievous pair unimpressed.

"I just thought I heard a noise and wanted to make sure everything was alright."

Shamal smiled at the Empress, running her hand gently through Signum's hair under the covers. The pinkette always had such wonderful hair. If Shamal had her way, she'd never let go of it.

"You're very thoughtful Hayate-sama," Shamal said, knowing full well the Empress was hiding something. Just to tease the girl a little more...

Shamal moved to sit up again. "Are you sure you don't need me to-"

"Ile, Shamal," Hayate said quickly, before Shamal could protest anymore. She held up her hand. "Everything is under control. Please enjoy the rest of your day off." A pause. "Sorry again to have disturbed your sleep."

Hayate bowed slightly to Shamal.

"Be well, Hayate-sama."

The Empress nodded with a smile before motioning to the two sprites to follow after her. Not even a minute later, the trio left Shamal's room without incident.

The head attendant giggled, silently patting herself on the back. It was not everyday one fooled the Empress. Looking down at her blanket, Shamal pulled back the covers. During the conversation with Hayate, she noticed Signum relaxing against her the longer the conversation went on. And now she knew why. A smile stretched across her face. The samurai had fallen asleep.

Shamal knew all about Signum's misery when it came to her being sick. The woman just couldn't sleep if something was fogging up her senses. Had she known all it took was a warm fluffy bed with her in it, Shamal would have suggested that to the pinkette sooner. The head attendant pulled some stray hairs out of Signum's face.

"Ah, sorry Shamal-san..."

Agito stared at Shamal in surprise, her gaze quickly lowering to her master sleeping next to the blonde on the bed. Or rather, partly on top of her. Out of the three of them, Hayate, Rein and herself, they had all forgotten to shut Shamal's bedroom door, and Agito had swiftly flown back to close it.

Shamal looked at Agito in shock, having forgotten completely about her open bedroom door when she pulled back the blanket to check on Signum. But then she smiled and brought up a finger to her lips in a shushing motion. Her free hand continued to stroke the samurai's hair.

"Oye! Agito-chan!" Rein exclaimed halfway down the hallway. "Hurry up! We have more rooms to search!"

"C-coming!" Agito said looking back through the open door. Turning her gaze to the Empress' head attendant again, the fire sprite smiled and closed the door gently behind her. It was nice to see her master finally getting some rest.

* * *

_**A/N:**__ The opening events to this chapter was inspired by E. G. Szyslak's story called "In My Pants." They were used with permission from E.G. Szyslak and their story can be found here: s/6446296/1/In_My_Pants_

_I definitely recommend reading that piece. It's awesome! :)_

_For those of you unfamiliar with the non-English words, I have translated them below._

_Ile = No_

_Deshi = Apprentice/Pupil _

_For an explanation of Japanese honorifics (eg. [name]-sama), please check out: wiki/Japanese_honorifics_


	2. Some Friendly Advice

**A Samurai's Pledge**

_**A/N**__: And the next chapter is up! I've tried to keep everyone as close as possible to their characters in the anime though I'm sure there will be a few OOC moments. Comments and reviews are much appreciated. Enjoy!_

_For those of you who left unsigned reviews, see my replies below:_

_ Love thus story - Thanks for the review. ^^ Aside from NanoFate, Signum x Shamal is my other favorite pairing of the series. I have been waiting to write a story about them for a while and am happy I can finally do it. Expect more fluffy moments and just plain awkward situations to come. Hehe. :P_

_ Tobi - Thanks for the review. ^^ I agree with you, there needs to be more stories about Signum x Shamal. :) It's a shame the anime didn't expand more on the relationship between them. It would have been awesome to see. Thanks again for the review. ^^_

_ Guest - Thanks for the review! It's always nice to hear people enjoy reading the chapters. :) Here's the next one for you._

_**Disclaimer**__: The characters and the worlds I write in do not belong to me. The stories that I write are intended for entertainment purposes. I do not make any money from them._

* * *

*** ~ Chapter 2: Some Friendly Advice ~ ***

Signum sighed heavily, her footsteps barely audible as she patrolled the inner hallways of the Imperial Palace. Just yesterday she had finally gotten over that damn cold and was able to move around freely on her own again. She wasn't cleared for duty until this afternoon, once Shamal checked her over for the last time. Heat instantly rose to Signum's cheeks at the thought of the blonde haired head attendant.

"_S-S-Shamal-san!"_

"_Good morning, Signum." A breath taking smile. "Did you sleep well?"_

Signum was ready to have a heart attack, in the moment she awoke in Shamal's bed, cuddled up against the other woman. She was so bewildered at first, that all she could do was stare at the blonde with her mouth hanging open in surprise. This prompted a giggle from Shamal, Signum's shock soon turning into embarrassment.

"_You look better. How are you feeling?"_

_The soft touch of gentle fingers through her hair._

"Focus, Signum!" the Captain of the Samurai scolded herself. Clearing her throat, Signum took a deep breath in an attempt to push aside the thoughts and images currently flooding her mind. Thoughts and images of a certain blonde haired head attendant.

Yagami Shamal.

Shamal. Shamal. Shamal.

The blonde's smile. Her gentle touch. That beautiful voice. Shamal's brilliant eyes.

Signum shook her head again. "Focus on the task at hand," she told herself, rubbing her eyes with her thumb and forefinger. It was careless to get distracted, especially while on patrol. Not that anyone would be so bold to break into the Imperial Palace at this time of the night. Not after the JS Incident. But Signum could never be too careful. The whole mishap with the crazy alchemist had proven that.

_Squeak._

Levantine was out in an instant, the samurai captain in a defensive stance. Looking to her left, where the sound originated from, Signum found herself staring at the double doors leading into the Imperial Kitchen. Double doors that were currently ajar. Blue eyes narrowed. The lights were off in the kitchen, but Signum could just barely make out someone moving around in the dark.

_A thief?_ Signum clenched her jaw. Nanoha had mentioned something about food disappearing lately. Specifically her pastries.

The pinkette quietly crept towards the kitchen, ready for a fight.

* * *

"Nanoha-san?"

At the sound of footsteps approaching, Shamal looked up from her book, surprised. She was clearly not expecting to see the said brunette walking into the Imperial Library, otherwise known as the Infinite Library. Shamal currently sat at one of the large tables in the middle of the library, researching healing techniques from the west. Books crammed the shelves lining the entire room, rising upwards to over thirty feet tall. Ladders were strategically placed nearby to allow for easy access of the books on the higher shelves. And this was only the first floor of the Infinite Library.

"Shamal-sama, good evening," Nanoha said, smiling brightly. She walked up to the table. "I didn't think anyone would be in here at this time of the night."

Shamal smiled back, gesturing towards the chair opposite her. "I'm surprised to see you here myself. Is everything okay?"

Takamachi Nanoha, otherwise known as the White Devil, gratefully took a seat opposite the Empress' head attendant with a sigh. She was currently dressed in her favorite pink kimono with a white sash. "I'm looking for Fate-chan."

Shamal tilted her head to the side in confusion. "Fate-san? I haven't seen her all day."

Aside from Shamal, Scrya Yunno was the only other person to be found in the Infinite Library for longer than an hour. Though, on occasion, the other blonde amongst the Empress' company was known to make an appearance or two.

"I know," Nanoha said with another sigh. "I think she's lost."

* * *

"Testerossa-san, what are you doing?"

Fate Testerossa, otherwise known as the Thunder Reaper, sweat dropped, smiling wearily. "Trying to avoid getting my head chopped off by Levantine?" Currently, the blonde had her back pressed up against one of the many kitchen cabinets in the Imperial Kitchen, Levantine just half a inch from her throat.

Signum sighed before re-sheathing her weapon. "You know that's not what I meant. Why are you in the kitchen at this hour? And in the dark no less. I thought you were an intruder."

Fate breathed in relief, slowly peeling herself off of the cupboard. When the kitchen suddenly illuminated, Fate didn't know what to expect. Had it not been for her quick reflexes and Signum's restraint, she would have lost her head.

"Well?" The Captain of the Samurai crossed her arms over her chest, looking as imposing as ever.

Fate swallowed nervously. "Would you believe me if I said I was lost?"

* * *

"Lost?" Shamal's eyebrow raised.

"Hai," Nanoha said before giggling. "Even after all this time, Fate-chan still gets lost.

Shamal giggled too. "That's understandable," she said. "I too, lose my way from time to time. And I've lived here for many years."

"Just how big is this place?"

Shamal stared at the book in front of her, stroking her chin in thought. "It's... very big?"

Another round of giggles.

* * *

"Lost, huh?" Signum was not buying it. "Lost with one of Takamachi-san's pastries in your hand?"

Fate looked at the confiscated sweet bun in her grasp before looking at the samurai guiltily._ Busted. _

"I was hungry..." Fate quietly admitted.

Signum sighed again, pinching the bridge of her nose. "No wonder Takamachi-san's pastries have gone missing lately."

* * *

"That big, huh?" Nanoha laughed. "Nyahaha, I'll never find Fate-chan at this rate. Maybe I should just wait in our room until she wanders back..." The brunette scratched her cheek in thought.

"If you'd like, I can have some of the attendants look for her."

Nanoha dismissed the offer with the shake of her head. "Ile, I'm sure she'll be back soon. She's never away from my side for too long."

"Never too long, huh?" Shamal smiled again when a dreamy expression appeared on the brunette's face. "I'm really happy for you two. It was driving the rest of us crazy to see both of you head over heels for each other but not know it."

"Ehhhhh?" Nanoha flushed instantly. "You knew?"

Shamal laughed. "We all knew."

"No way!"

"I'm just surprised you two didn't realize it earlier."

Nanoha was absolutely mortified, causing Shamal to giggle once again. It was the cutest thing the head attendant had ever seen, aside for a sleeping Signum in _her_ bed. Nothing could beat the peaceful expression on Signum's face as the pinkette cuddled her. That was one of Shamal's most fondest memories to date.

Nanoha smiled. "Thinking about Signum-sama again?"

"Eh?"

* * *

"Please don't tell Nanoha about this Signum-sama, please!"

The Captain of the Samurai frowned. Fate's hands were clasped together in front of her, the pleading blonde already halfway between getting down on her hands and knees and standing.

"Testerossa-"

"If you don't tell her, I won't tell Shamal-sama about those glances you steal all the time."

Signum did a double take. "W-what?"

* * *

"So has she confessed yet?" Nanoha asked, the brunette literally bouncing in her chair with excitement. Shamal, on the other hand, was flabbergasted.

"She?"

"Signum-sama, of course!"

By all the gods in the heavens, the smirking Nanoha in front of her reminded Shamal so much of Hayate right now. It was horrifying.

"W-what?"

"Oh come on now!" Nanoha chided, leaning closer to the blonde. "It's very obvious that she loves you, and that you love her back. So how come you two aren't together yet?"

* * *

"What did you just say?"

Fate sweat dropped for the second time in the span of five minutes. She hadn't meant to let that observation slip, Fate being very observant of her surroundings. At first, she thought she was seeing things, when it came to the looks Signum gave Shamal and vice versa. But then one night, she and Nanoha got to talking, and the brunette mentioned the kiss in the Imperial Hospital. It wasn't a full on kiss on the lips, but still. After that, Fate paid much more attention when those two were in the same room.

"I... uh..."

* * *

Shamal was at a loss for words. To say she expected such things from Nanoha's lips would have been a grave error. It was no secret she liked Signum. It wasn't like she hid that fact. But to hear that the samurai captain returned such feelings was just preposterous. As much as Shamal loved to tease Signum about it, the head attendant had already accepted the fact that Signum probably didn't like her in the same way. Why Signum even tolerated such behaviour from her was a mystery, but that didn't stop the blonde from having fun with that.

Shamal gave Nanoha a sad smile. "You're very sweet Nanoha-san," she said. "But as much as I would like to believe it, I don't think Signum cares for me in the way I do for her."

"What?" The smile Shamal wore was truly heartbreaking to look at. But Nanoha couldn't but look at it. "But how can you say that? What about the kiss that one time and the-"

"We're just good friends," Shamal interrupted. "Just really good friends."

"That can't be though..."

* * *

"For you, out of everyone," Signum began, rubbing her eyes again. "To think that-"

"**Sir is not wrong,"** Bardiche piped up, in defense of his master.

Signum's attention immediately snapped to Fate's golden magatama bracelet in shock. "Excuse me?"

Not only was Fate delusional, but so was her legendary weapon.

Fate sighed. It seemed like it was up to her to knock some sense into the samurai. "I didn't realize samurai were allowed to lie."

Blue eyes narrowed at the insult. "Omai-"

"If you don't tell her soon Signum-sama, you could lose her forever."

That statement left the samurai silent and reeling.

"I know how quickly things change," the blonde continued. "From personal experience." Fate walked up to Signum and put a hand on the samurai's arm. "Don't wait for some life threatening event to happen before you finally bring your feelings to light. In our line of work, who knows when that will be? Today. Tomorrow. A year from now."

Signum frowned again, turning her gaze away. As much as she didn't want to hear it, Fate was right. "Testerossa-"

"You are not a coward Signum-sama." Fate squeezed the pinkette's arm. "If you love her, just tell her. That's all there is to it."

* * *

_BADAHM!_

Nanoha slammed her fists down on the table making Shamal jump. "I don't believe that and neither should you!" There was such fury in the brunette's eyes, Shamal seeing the Nanoha's alter ego coming to light.

"You two love each other," Nanoha continued. "If you don't tell Signum-sama soon, you may lose her forever. Like how I almost lost Fate."

"Nanoha-"

"Don't make the same mistake that we did," Nanoha said, not skipping a beat. "It took the JS Incident for us to finally admit our feelings for each other. Thankfully, everything turned out for the best, and all of us survived. But if it hadn't, if one of us died..."

Shamal swallowed back the lump in her throat. Just the thought of one of them or both of them dying, that was just too much to bear. Even more so if the same had happened to Signum-

Shamal jumped when she felt hands on her own. Nanoha smiled at her. "Don't you think it's about time that both of you talked?"

Wide violent eyes softened. Shamal smiled at the brunette. "Hai," she said. "Thank you, Nanoha-san."

Nanoha smiled back. "Nyahaha. Don't thank me just yet, Shamal-sama." Nanoha pulled Shamal to her feet and dragged her towards the doors of the Infinite Library.

"N-N-Nanoha-san?"

Nanoha laughed. "Go get her!"

Shamal stumbled out of the Infinite Library with a yelp, flailing to keep her balance. In the end, that really wasn't necessary as she practically fell straight into the shocked arms of Signum.

"S-Shamal-san?"

Signum's cheeks were pink, the samurai reacting on instinct the moment she caught sight of the tumbling blonde in green. It was pure coincidence they had run into each other here. Or rather, that Shamal fell straight into her arms. Fate had practically kicked Signum out of the Imperial Kitchen after their talk, citing she needed to get back to her room before Nanoha sent out a search party after her. That left the samurai alone to sort out her thoughts while she walked around in a daze.

"S-S-Signum-san?" Shamal's cheeks were red, both from shock and embarrassment. The last person she expected to run into, here of all places, was Signum.

The pair stared into each other's eyes in silence, neither moving, neither trying to escape from the other. They only breathed.

"I'll... leave you two alone," Nanoha said with a cheeky grin. The brunette half walked, half jogged down the hallway, smothering a giggle with her hands.

Getting her wits about her, Shamal immediately righted herself, pulling away from Signum's grasp to straighten out her robe. Signum reacted in the same manner, clearing her throat to hide her nervousness while she looked away.

"Are you alright?"

"Hai," Shamal said quietly, remembering the feeling of Signum's arms around her. She liked that feeling a lot.

"I am glad."

Shamal looked up to find Signum's gaze everywhere else but on her, a soft blush on the samurai's cheeks. Signum was gorgeous.

"You're up late."

"On patrol," was Signum's quick reply, the pinkette finally turning to look at Shamal. "And you?"

Shamal looked back to the library doors behind her. "Just some late night studying."

"I see."

Shamal looked down at her feet.

"_If you don't tell her soon Signum-sama, you could lose her forever."_

"_Don't you think it's about time that both of you talked?"_

More seconds passed by in awkward silence, neither Signum nor Shamal knowing what to do or say. Ever since the JS Incident, and especially as of late, both knights found it rather awkward to be in each other's company. Not the unpleasant awkward but the_ too_ pleasant awkward. It was very clear their feelings for each other had grown during that horrible event just over a year ago. But as how to address those growing feelings, that remained to be determined.

Then Signum spoke up.

"I shall escort you to your room then."

Shamal looked up in surprise. "Would you?"

Signum looked away again, the moment their eyes met. "I would... feel safer knowing you made it back to your room alright."

Shamal stared at the samurai, opened mouth for a moment, before a brilliant smile stretched across her face. She then took a hold of Signum's arm, much to the surprise of the Captain of the Samurai, and leaned against her. "Thank you, Signum-sama," she said. "For walking me safely back to my room."

"It's... no trouble," Signum said, the flush on her cheeks darker now. She stole a glance down at the humming blonde next to her, before a smile of her own appeared on her face.

While it wasn't a full out confession of feelings, it was a start.

* * *

_**A/N:**__ For those of you unfamiliar with the non-English words, I have translated them below._

_Hai = Yes_

_Ile = No_

_Omai = You_

_For an explanation of Japanese honorifics (eg. [name]-sama), please check out: http[colon][doubleslash] wiki/Japanese_honorifics_


	3. A Child's Perspective

**A Samurai's Pledge**

_**A/N**__: And the next chapter is up! I've tried to keep everyone as close as possible to their characters in the anime though I'm sure there will be a few OOC moments. Comments and reviews are much appreciated. Enjoy!_

_For those of you who left unsigned reviews, see my replies below:_

_ trumm12345 - Thanks for the review. ^^ To answer your question, there will be a rival of sorts, but not in the romantic type. You'll see what I mean as the story progresses. :)_

_ Love thus story - Thanks for the review! You're very sweet. :) I too am a sucker for fluffiness, and with this pairing, I can't resist throwing some of that in. Hehe._

_ Guest - Thanks for the review. ^^ The whole thing with Fate and Nanoha giving advice to Signum and Shamal thing was not intentional. Nanoha was convinced Fate got herself lost again and went to look for her, while Fate snuck off to the kitchen to get a snack. Hehe. XD Soon the ancient enemy appears. Soon. ;) So stay tuned! _

_**Disclaimer**__: The characters and the worlds I write in do not belong to me. The stories that I write are intended for entertainment purposes. I do not make any money from them._

* * *

*** ~ Chapter 3: A Child's Perspective ~ ***

"Signum... san?"

"Shamal-san."

Movement in her peripherals caught Vivio's attention. She looked up just in time to see Signum stride up to the table. The trio was currently in the Infinite Library, both of Vivio's mamas away on an important mission. Or so Hayate had told her. And so, Vivio was left in the care of Shamal, until her mamas came back.

"Ohayou, Signum-san." Vivio smiled brightly.

"Ohayou, Vivio-san," Signum replied back with a small smile of her own. "Ohayou, Shamal-san." Signum bowed to Shamal.

"Is... everything alright?"

To say Shamal was shocked by the samurai's appearance would have been putting things mildly. While Signum was by no means illiterate, surprising everyone with her advanced knowledge of history and scripting (even Yunno was impressed), Signum's aversion to the Infinite Library was no secret. It was too stuffy and crowded. Signum was more of a go-getter than the type of person to sit down quietly for hours on end.

"Everything is well," Signum replied, albeit a bit stiffly in Vivio's opinion. The young child had seen the pair together many times before now, usually the meetings ending with rather amusing results. This seemed to be the case now, but Vivio refrained from making any judgements for the time being.

"I... uh... just finished my rounds for the day."

Awkward silence.

"May I sit?"

"Oh! Of course!" Shamal said, immediately gesturing towards the available seats left at the table that both she and Vivio occupied. One end of the table was stacked with books, but there was enough room to squeeze in another person.

"Thank you," Signum said, the samurai choosing to sit next to Vivio, opposite Shamal.

Vivio raised an eyebrow at the suddenly strained atmosphere in the room. Neither of the adults noticed the amusement in her eyes, Signum staring at the table in thought while Shamal shyly looked in the samurai's direction.

Oh? Red and green eyes darted back and forth between the pair. A knowing smile formed on the small blonde's lips. She knew that look. Having spent as much time as she had with her mamas, it was very clear what was going on between the two grown ups.

Vivio was not stupid. A child she may be, but even she had ears and eyes. She had heard of the rumors (mainly coming from the Empress, that scheming woman!) of the goings on between the Head Attendant and the Captain of the Samurai. And, as it was, she could plainly see what was happening between them right now. With a smile stretching further across her face, Vivio decided to help these two poor saps out. Sometimes all one needed was a gentle push in the right direction. Or maybe a Starlight Breaker, or two.

"Ahhh mou~" Vivio sighed in exasperation, feigning frustration and annoyance. Both Shamal's and Signum's attention snapped towards her in an instant.

"What's wrong Vivio-chan?" Shamal looked at the book Vivio was reading, trying to spot what was giving the young child problems.

"I don't get it," Vivio said with another sigh. She faked a pout.

"What is it that you don't understand?" Signum leaned in closer as well, to look at Vivio's book.

"If two people like each other, why don't they say so?"

"Eh?"

Vivio grinned inwardly, having gotten the exact response she'd been looking for. Both Signum and Shamal went stiff as boards, eyes wide and cheeks flushing. The pair looked at each other, quickly averting their gazes elsewhere when their eyes met. Vivio chose this as a sign to continue her ploy.

"Nanoha-mama and Fate-mama were telling me how they met last night," Vivio said with a smile. This statement seemed to ease the adults from their shock and the anxiety. "They really, really liked each other, but were scared to say so. But if you really, really like someone, shouldn't you tell them?"

Shamal opened her mouth to say something, but it would be Signum who got the first word. "Sometimes," the samurai started. "Sometimes people are afraid to say their feelings."

Shamal looked at Signum in shock. It was like the samurai had read her mind.

"But why?" Vivio questioned, like any curious child would.

"Because they're afraid the other person wouldn't like them in the same way," Shamal said, this time surprising Signum. "They're afraid that if they say how they really feel, and that person doesn't feel the same way, they would lose the friendship they had with that person."

"But if they like them back, and nobody says anything, both of them won't know," Vivio protested. The little girl's face twisted in confusion.

"It's complicated," Signum said with a chuckle.

That very sound made Shamal's heart flutter in her chest. And Signum's expression was just so-

"We'll I'm not afraid!" Vivio declared proudly.

"You're very brave Vivio-chan," Shamal said with a smile. "Not everyone is brave like you."

Shamal's smile was the most beautiful thing Signum had ever seen. The samurai was quickly enraptured by it, Signum not even realizing Vivio had caught her staring.

Vivio smiled teethily. "You're brave too Shamal-san," Vivio said, snapping Signum out of her daze. "Hayate-san told me about how you and Signum-san helped protect people when that meanie tried to hurt everyone, including Vivio."

Jail Scaglietti. Just the thought of the man made Signum scowl. Shamal must have been thinking about him too, for even she wore a frown. Not good. That was not the desired effect Vivio was looking for.

"Is there anyone you really like Shamal-san?"

That did it.

"Eh?" Shamal blinked.

"You're really pretty," Vivio continued, causing the head attendant to blush a bit.

"Thank you, Vivio-chan."

A smile couldn't but also stretch across Signum's face. Shamal was breathtaking. The rosy colour on the attendant's cheeks was a real turn on.

"So is there?" came the question again.

"Umm..." Shamal dared a glance in Signum's direction, quickly looking away when she caught the samurai looking at her inquisitively. "Well..." Another quick glance to Signum.

Shamal felt her cheeks burn hotter the longer she hesitated, and decided to use a diversionary tactic to deflect attention away from herself. "How about you Signum-san? Is there anyone you really like?"

That one threw Signum totally off guard, the samurai captain momentarily looking like a deer frozen in the headlights of an oncoming car. It was the cutest thing ever, causing the Empress' head attendant to giggle.

"I uh..." Signum cleared her throat before looking away briefly. She did her best to restrain the flush creeping up her neck and cheeks, though she wasn't quite convinced that she managed that feat. If she was flushing, neither Vivio nor Shamal indicated so, both of them looking at her with such curiosity. Signum found it hard to articulate anything proper.

"Do you?" Vivio asked again.

Gods, this was why Signum stayed away from children. They were too damn curious for their own good. Thankfully, Vivio's impatience worked in the samurai's favor and the child cut her off before she could even speak.

"You should tell them you like them soon," Vivio said turning back to her book.

"P-pardon?" Signum sputtered.

"You too Shamal-san," Vivio continued, not looking at either of them.

"W-what?"

Out of the corner of her eye, Vivio could see both adults absolutely flabbergasted. "It would just be so sad if you didn't." Vivio chose this time to look up. "I'm sure she'll say she likes you back."

A look at Signum and then one at Shamal.

"She?" both Signum and Shamal questioned in unison. They immediately looked at each other and then quickly looked at Vivio.

"Hai!" Vivio giggled.

Those two were so clueless sometimes. But in the end, Vivio knew they'd figure things out. After all, adults were supposed to be smarter than children.

* * *

_**A/N:**__ For those of you unfamiliar with the non-English words, I have translated them below._

_Ohayou = Good Morning/Hello_

_Hai = Yes_

_For an explanation of Japanese honorifics (eg. [name]-sama), please check out: wiki/Japanese_honorifics_


	4. So Close

**A Samurai's Pledge**

_**A/N**__: And the next chapter is up! I've tried to keep everyone as close as possible to their characters in the anime though I'm sure there will be a few OOC moments. Comments and reviews are much appreciated._

_Calling all artists! I'm looking to take advantage of the somewhat new image/cover system FFnet has implemented and get covers done for all of my stories. If you're interested in drawing something, send me a PM (preferably). Artists will be fully credited for their work. I have specific ideas of how I would want the covers to look, so keep that in mind._

_For those of you who left unsigned reviews, see my replies below:_

_ trumm12345 - Thanks for the review. ^^ Please don't die. There's lots more story to come. XD I appreciate your patience for this story. :)_

_ Love thus story - Thanks for the review. :) I do what I can to let people know I appreciate them reading my stories, including replying back to anon reviews. ^^ And yes, Vivio can be quite sneaky when she wants to be. Lol. It's probably Hayate's influence... :P _

_**Disclaimer**__: The characters and the worlds I write in do not belong to me. The stories that I write are intended for entertainment purposes. I do not make any money from them._

* * *

*** ~ Chapter 4: So Close ~ ***

Signum tilted her head to the side, stretching out her stiff neck and shoulder muscles. It had been another productive, yet tiring day for the samurai, this particular day involving Signum running all over town, apprehending petty bandits. Ever since the JS incident, crime in the capital city had almost ceased to be. Though, on occasions like today, the local bandits got a bit too rowdy and sought to test their luck.

A groan.

Signum grimaced slightly at the soreness emanating from her shoulders. Her back was tense. While she was by no means out of shape, having to fend off five bandits simultaneously was a bit trying at times, especially when one of them had a Spirit Seed. On occasion those things popped up, but it was never something Signum couldn't handle. Nor were they an immediate threat. The White Devil and the Thunder Reaper made frequent sweeps of the city searching for Spirit Seeds, the duo being quite efficient in tracking down those magical leftovers and sealing them.

"Ompf!"

Signum stumbled backwards in surprise when something hit her in the gut.

"Itai..." said a small voice in front of her.

"Rein-san?"

Signum blinked at the slightly dazed sprite in curiosity. Both of them currently occupied the main hallway leading to the Imperial basement archives and cellar. It was rather unsual for the little one to visit the lower regions of the Imperial Palace, Signum herself only down here presently as she had to drop off today's patrol report to the archives' scribe. She was actually on the way up to her room when Rein appeared.

"Signum... san?" Rein looked up Signum holding her aching nose.

In her haste, Rein failed to notice the person in front of her as she rounded the corner. It took the silver haired sprite a split second to realize who she ran into. When it finally clicked she that was currently facing the Captain of the Samurai, tiny blue eyes widened in surprise before a mischievous grin stretched across Rein's face. Maybe she could kill two birds with one stone.

"Signum-san!" Rein exclaimed, flying up to the samurai's face feigning panic. "Help!"

Signum was immediately on alert by Rein's outburst. Very rarely did the smallest of the Empress' guardians lose her cool like this, and when she did, something was usually very terribly wrong.

"IwashelpingShamal-saninthecellarwhenshescreame dand-"

The Captain of the Samurai bolted for the Imperial Cellar even before Rein could finish her sentence, somehow managing to understand the sprite despite her rushed breath.

"-only then did I realize the wooden stool she was standing on broke," Rein said, finishing her explanation at a normal pace, once the pinkette was out of sight.

A tiny grin.

* * *

Shamal sighed for the third time in the span of minutes. She was currently in the Imperial Cellar, standing in the last row of shelves (all of which held a variety of medicinal herbs), staring at one particular basket of herbs just out of reach. While it was called as such, this particular room wasn't so much of a cellar as it was an indoor storage room of sorts. Rows upon rows of wooden shelving filled the room, baskets and ceramic urns of all shapes and sizes among its contents. Most contained herbs for healing, though some of the shelves also held some of Nanoha's cooking spices.

Not much time had passed since she fell off the wooden step stool when reaching for something on a higher shelf. The Empress' head attendant and healer had run out of the commonly used Aloe herb upstairs, and had simply paid a visit down here to restock the Imperial Hospital many floors above. Unknown to Shamal, the stepping stool often used to reach the higher items on the top shelves, had finally succumbed to age (to be fair, this particular stool was found in the cellar long before Shamal came to the Imperial Palace), being thoroughly rotted through. The moment Shamal stepped on it to reach the Aloe herb bin up top, the rotted wood gave way and Shamal tumbled to the floor on her behind.

After that minor incident, Rein (the tiny sprite keeping Shamal company at the time), proclaimed she would find one of the taller attendants to help Shamal in this task. As easily as she could just fly up to the bin herself, the container was much too heavy for the little guardian to pull off the shelf. So, she would get help. Shamal started to protest, saying she would be able to manage by herself, but Rein had flown away before Shamal could finish.

Another sigh.

That was five minutes ago. And Shamal had made no headway in reaching her desired basket. Feeling rather impatient at the moment, the blonde half considered just climbing the storage shelves herself (the shelves should be able to handle her weight, maybe), that is, until the last person she expected to see burst into the cellar, shouting her name.

"Shamal!"

Shamal jumped in surprised at Signum's sudden entrance, the samurai rushing in like a raging storm until she caught sight of the Empress' Head Attendant. Levantine hummed in the pinkette's grasp, Signum's gaze darting all over the room, looking for a non-existent attacker.

"Where is it?!"

The blonde blinked in surprise, taking in Signum's appearance. The samurai's hair was wild, some of Signum's pink strands having escaped her hairband. A shimmer of sweat coated the swordswoman's face, Signum's cheeks slightly flushed from her dash over here. A slightly sweet musk-like scent, something which Shamal identified as Signum's own unique smell, hung around the samurai, a very welcomed smell in comparison to the damp and stagnant air down in the cellar. All in all, Signum was magnificent.

"Signum... san?" Those were the only words Shamal could muster, completely enraptured by that which was Signum. When Rein said she'd go find someone taller to help her, Shamal didn't expect it would be Signum.

"Are you hurt? Who attacked you?"

Signum was at Shamal's side in an instant. While physically the healer looked unharmed, Shamal seemed to be out of sorts, her normally clear violet eyes looking a bit hazy. Signum had yet to sense who or what Shamal's attacker was, but when she did, there would be hell to pay.

"Attacked me...? What?" Shamal blinked quickly, trying to make sense of what Signum was saying. "What are you talking about?"

The grip on Levantine tightened greatly. Did the attacker know magic, having confused Shamal so?

"Rein-san ran into me a few minutes ago," Signum hastily explained. Her gaze still searched the room, the samurai staying close to the Empress' Head Attendant. "She said you screamed and..." Signum's voice trailed off.

Shamal stared at Signum in silence for a few awkward seconds. Then a smile widened across the blonde's face as she raised an eyebrow. "And...?" she said expectantly. Shamal quickly glanced at the remains of the rotted stool she had swept off to the side.

"And..." Signum said something unintelligible.

Shamal's smile grew even wider. "I'm sorry Signum-san, I didn't hear that. What did you say?"

Signum met Shamal's gaze before looking way, her cheeks a bit more flushed than before. "And..." The pinkette swallowed noticeably. "And I don't know the rest, for I had rushed off to your aid before Rein-san could finish her explanation."

Shamal wanted to squeal. It was in times like this that Signum made her fall in love with the pinkette even more.

A giggle.

"Is that so?" Shamal said, grinning like a Cheshire cat. The Empress' Head Attendant truly cherished moments like these. "Fear not my valiant knight," Shamal said patting Signum on the shoulder. "I have already dispatched the attacker."

Signum's eyes snapped to Shamal's in an instant.

"It's over there," the blonde said, directing the samurai's attention to the broken stool off to the side.

Signum blinked. "I don't understand," she said looking at Shamal in confusion.

"I was trying to reach that-" Shamal said pointing to the Aloe herb basket on the top shelf of the nearest rack, "-when the stool gave way beneath me. Rein-chan said she was going to find me some taller help."

Another giggle.

"Though I never expected it to be you."

"Oh." Signum lowered her sword in embarrassment. "My apologies Shamal," the samurai immediately began. This was rather humiliating. "I-"

Shamal pressed a finger to Signum's lips, effectively shushing her. "It makes me very happy to know you'd come to my aid so quickly were I in trouble," she said. Shamal smiled more as Signum darkened in colour.

"But seeing as there's no attacker now, and I'm not in dire straits, perhaps you can help me reach that top basket?"

* * *

"I'm telling you Agito-chan!" Rein exclaimed. "There's something going on between Signum-san and Shamal-san. Can't you see it?!"

Agito sighed in exasperation, flying down one of may corridors of the Imperial Palace, the other sprite in tow. It was only by coincidence that she ran into Rein (or rather flew into her). Agito liked Rein a lot, the silver haired guardian something akin to a big sister to her. But during times like this, Agito often wondered just who was the older one between them two.

"Rein-san," Agito said flatly. "Whether or not there's something going on between my master and Shamal-san is none of my business."

Agito was currently looking for Signum, having been told by one of the other samurais that she had come back from patrol. Agito was going to ask if the pinkette wanted something to eat, as was their routine whenever Signum came back from walking through the capital city. It wasn't much, in Agito's opinion, but she tried to help her master as best she could, whenever she could.

"Oh Agito-chan! You're hopeless! Hopeless!" Rein whined. "How can you not want to help those two realize their undying love for each other!?"

Agito sighed again.

The fire sprite knew very well of Signum's affections for Shamal. Yet, for whatever reason, the samurai remained silent on the matter. It seemed quite evident to Agito that Shamal loved Signum back too, but the blonde also hadn't said anything about it either. Maybe she was just reading into things that weren't actually there. She wasn't human after all. And she was still new to all this stuff.

"Rein-"

"Fear not Agito-chan!" Rein said, patting Agito on the back. "I have taken measures to ensure they realize their love for each other."

Agito's head snapped towards Rein in an instant.

"What did you do?"

Rein cackled, horrifyingly similar to how the Empress cackled when doing something mischievous. "Let's just say I may have locked them in the Imperial Cellar for a while..."

* * *

Signum was stuck.

"Signum, stop squirming and hold still!"

If asked, Signum would have said it was akin to being stuck between a rock and a hard place. Well, maybe that wasn't quite right. Signum was stuck in the Imperial Cellar, all alone, with Shamal.

Unbeknownst to the pair, Rein had stealthily trailed behind the Captain of the Samurai after she rushed off to find Shamal. During the duo's initial conversation, the tiny sprite closed the door to the Imperial Cellar, locking it with the crossbar. When Signum and Shamal realized their predicament, that being they were stuck in the cellar, Signum offered to break down the door with Levantine. Before she could, Shamal quickly reminded her of what happened the last time she did something like that, Signum immediately abandoning that idea. The Captain of the Samurai didn't fancy being the Empress' personal slave for another month. And so she was stuck.

With Shamal.

With Shamal who was trying to undress her.

"Shamal-san," Signum said, backing up a few steps trying to escape Shamal's prying hands. "This really is not necessary. I-"

"I'm going to give you a massage, Signum," Shamal said in finality, her fingers pulling at the belts which held together Signum's armor. She had already managed to undo the belts holding down Signum's left shoulder plate. "You're acting like I'm trying to ravage you or something."

That's right, a massage. That's what Shamal was trying to do. Not actually... well... something else, as much as Signum fantasized and would have let it happen.

After helping the blonde get her necessary items from the top shelf, during their wait for someone to notice them gone and let them out, Shamal realized just how tired and aching Signum was. Perhaps it was the way Signum rubbed her neck, or the way she grimaced every time she stretched a sore muscle. Whatever the case, Shamal had taken it upon herself to ease Signum of her pain (the blonde was just too good for her own good) and started grabbing at Signum's armor.

This shouldn't have been a surprise to the samurai. Shamal had helped her out of her armor many times before to heal her injuries. But after Shamal's comment, the one about ravaging, Signum's thoughts quickly took a turn for the worst, instantly becoming thoughts unbecoming of a knight. The pinkette reeled back from the Shamal's touch. Signum didn't trust herself with the other woman at this moment.

By the gods! She should have never read that tome Hayate gave her. If she'd only known...

"Shamal-" Signum started to protest again, stumbling back a few more steps. Shamal's grip was unrelenting!

"Signum!" Shamal grunted, still holding firm to Signum's armor. She was determined to get the blasted thing off.

"Shama-ahhhhhl!"

_THUMP!_

Both Signum and Shamal tumbled to the floor in a tangle of limbs.

In their struggle, the pair had unknowingly wandered towards the broken bits of stool, Signum promptly tripping over it in her haste to avoid Shamal's clutches. Shamal, refusing to let go of Signum's armor until she relented, was naturally pulled down with the samurai and landed top of her.

A thick swallow.

"Are you... alright?"

Signum felt her breath leave her, and it was not because of Shamal falling on top of her. Well, actually, it was because of that, but not in the regular sense.

"H-hai..." Shamal said quietly, looking into Signum's deep blue eyes. She was lying on top of the pinkette, her arms propped up against Signum's armored chest to keep their faces from smashing together. Signum had her arms wrapped around Shamal's waist, a firm yet comfortable grip. Their faces were only inches apart.

"A-are you... alright?"

Signum swallowed. "I am... unharmed," was the samurai's response, her gaze never breaking from Shamal's. They stared at each other in silence.

"Why do you always run away from me?" Shamal asked in a whisper. She was slowly lowering herself down on Signum, licking her lips.

"I don't run from anything," Signum replied in an equally quiet voice. She had yet to move from her current position. The Captain of the Samurai was quite capable of halting the Empress' Head Attendant's movements, but she didn't.

"Good," Shamal said, leaning in closer. Her eyes started to close. She could feel Signum's breath upon her lips. "Because I would hate to think it was me you were running fr-"

_KATHUNK! CREEEEEAK!_

The door to the Imperial Cellar swung open.

"Master!" Agito exclaimed, flying in and navigating through the various shelves of medicinal herbs. "Are you-"

The fire sprite stopped at the last row of shelves. There she found Signum and Shamal standing next to each other, both women visibly flustered and in various sorts of disarray.

"-down... here...?"

Agito grimaced. Somehow she felt like she had intruded on something very important.

Signum cleared her throat. "Thank you, Agito-san, for opening the door for us." The samurai would not meet Shamal's gaze.

Agito frowned.

"We're very lucky you found us, Agito-chan," Shamal said, though the blonde didn't sound very happy. In fact, she looked rather disappointed. "Who knows how long we would have been stuck in here."

Agito looked back and forth between the samurai and healer. "Uh... I'm glad you're both okay?" she said rather pathetically. "I hope I wasn't... interrupting anything."

"Ile," Signum said curtly. "Nothing at all."

"Hai," Shamal said, dejection in her voice. "It was nothing."

Agito cursed inwardly

Stupid Rein! This was all her fault!

* * *

_**A/N:**__ For those of you unfamiliar with the non-English words, I have translated them below._

_Itai = Ouch_

_Hai = Yes_

_Ile = No_

_For an explanation of Japanese honorifics (eg. [name]-sama), please check out: wiki/Japanese_honorifics_


	5. Distant Memory

**A Samurai's Pledge**

_**A/N**__: I've tried to keep everyone as close as possible to their characters in the anime though I'm sure there will be a few OOC moments. Comments and reviews are much appreciated. Enjoy!_

_For those of you who left unsigned reviews, see my replies below:_

_ trumm12345 - Thanks for the review. ^^ I'm glad you like the story as much as you do. :) For now, updates will be on a monthly basis, but I'm hoping that will change later when my schedule frees up a bit. For now though, it will be updated monthly._

_ Love thus story - Thanks for the review. ^^ Torturing you, huh? XD I do my best. Hehe. I hope you enjoy this chapter. :)_

_**Disclaimer**__: The characters and the worlds I write in do not belong to me. The stories that I write are intended for entertainment purposes. I do not make any money from them._

* * *

*** ~ Chapter 5: Distant Memory ~ ***

"Ah mou!"

Puppy Zafira yawned, watching as the Empress paced back and forth in her room, ignoring the mounds of parchments currently occupying her desk. Most of them were trivial requests from the city folk, about some thing or another, but that was beside the point.

The day had started off well enough, the Empress settling down for a quiet morning of filling out request forms and such. Then, out of the blue, Hayate shot up from her desk, exclaiming loudly about a certain two people, questioning just how dense they could be. And now they were here. Rein paced with the brunette, except in the air.

Puppy Zafira sighed. Just when he thought some normalcy had returned to regular life after the JS Incident, something else happened. That something else being the lack of progress in Signum's and Shamal's love life. Puppy Zafira sighed again.

The blue demon wolf was not the type to gossip. He could care less about all the hearsay floating around the Imperial Palace. It was unavoidable, of course, as all of the imperial attendants loved to talk. If it was not about the latest fashion from the west, it was about some handsome scholar in the noble court. Though, as of late, the general talk of the palace had shifted to a different topic: the love lives of the Empress and her inner circle.

To Zafira, all of the speculation was outrageously hilarious. Rumor had it that he, Zafira of the Wolkenritter, had an alternate form, one which looked human and had wolf ears and a wolf tail. Further to that rumor, it was said that he was secretly in love with the Empress' Head Attendant and Healer, Shamal, that being the main reason he was often in her company when not watching over the Empress. Totally preposterous, Zafira knew, but it still made him shake his head to hear such things. First off, if he did indeed have such a form, he certainly knew better than to go after a taken woman. Even if Shamal didn't know it yet. Of course, rumours didn't stop there.

There were also rumours involving the White Devil and Thunder Reaper out there, some about their illicit love affair (which was not so much a rumor, really), or about the White Devil and the newly promoted Infinite Head Librarian Scrya Yunno-san. Heck, there were even rumors of Signum and the Thunder Reaper floating around, something Signum vehemently denied and threatened bodily harm should such things be repeated. Zafira was certain that particular rumor was all Hayate's doing, the Empress being quite devious when she wanted to be.

Surprisingly, there was no mention of a Signum and Shamal love affair, something Zafira knew all of his close friends and family were rooting for. Perhaps that's why the Empress was in such a frizzle today. After Rein's regular report, Hayate had been up in arms and more than usual ever since.

"Zafira-san! Are you listening to me?"

Puppy Zafira blinked, only then realizing he was being spoken to. And looked at. By both Rein and Hayate.

"My apologies," Puppy Zafira said. "I must have dozed off. Can you repeat what you just said?"

"Ah mou!" Rein whined, flailing around, pulling a tantrum while floating in front of his face. Puppy Zafira couldn't but chuckle at how similar Rein and Hayate were to each other.

"I was asking you what we should do about Shamal-san and Signum-san," Rein said, quite evidently annoyed that she had to repeat herself. "Hayate didn't like my original suggestion."

Puppy Zafira raised an eyebrow when he caught sight of Hayate nodding fervently behind the silver haired guardian. "And what suggestion would that be?" Puppy Zafira knew he was going to regret asking that question, but he couldn't help be curious. Rein had such a creative mind sometimes.

"I was going to wait until Signum-san was using the imperial baths," Rein began. "And the moment she entered, I would rush over to Shamal-san and tell her that Signum-san had been injured, and headed straight to the baths to wash off the evidence. When Shamal-san dashed off to check on her, I would lock both of them in."

Rein was a sly one, the blue demon wolf had to give her that. Both of Puppy Zafira's eyebrows went up at the suggestion, the small blue demon wolf quickly finding his thoughts going in a direction he didn't want them to. He shook his head, trying to erase those vivid images only for Hayate to speak up, making things worse.

"Ile Rein!" Hayate scolded. "You can't do that!"

"But Haaayaaaate~!" Rein whined again.

"Unacceptable!" the Empress continued, unfazed. "If anyone was to walk in on Signum or Shamal bathing, it would be me!" Hayate cackled mischievously, making a grabbing motion with her hands.

If Puppy Zafira had hands, he would have face palmed.

"Wouldn't it be best if we left those two alone to figure out things on their own?" Puppy Zafira said, after recovering.

"But Zafira!" It was Hayate's turn to whine. "It's been over a year now and those two still haven't clued in! We have to help them!"

Puppy Zafira stared at the Empress, unblinking. "Um... why?"

Both Rein and Hayate sighed in exasperation.

"He's hopeless!" the Empress said, throwing up her hands in defeat. "Hopeless!"

Rein patted her mistress on the shoulder consolingly. "Don't worry, Hayate," the little sprite said. "We'll figure something out. And when we do, then we'll then hook Zafira-san up with a certain bright eyed, bushy tailed demon fox of the Harlaown family to show him just what he's missing."

Puppy Zafira nodded in agreement, wagging his tail happily now that the two in front of him had finally moved onto another subject, and ceased harassing him for love advice. Then his brain caught up with his ears.

"Wait, what?" he nearly squawked.

* * *

On the other side of the Imperial Palace, the two in question were in their rooms sorting through the latest mail. Seeing an unknown sender on one of the envelopes, Shamal tore open the packaging and unfolded the letter. Within seconds, violet eyes went wide with disbelief, tears of happiness pooling at the corners of her eyes. The letter was from a cousin of Shamal's, one she thought had died many years ago in the Garden of Time incident.

Victoria Dahlgrün was assumed dead, along with the rest of her family when their family estate collapsed upon their heads as fire rained from the sky. Yet, clearly this wasn't the case as the letter in Shamal's hands stated her well being and her wish to meet with her cousin again. Over joyed, Shamal immediately set out to reply back and arrange the fateful meeting.

Just a few corridors down from Shamal's room was Signum's, the samurai having also received a mysterious letter from an unknown sender. With curiosity getting the better of her, she chose to open that letter first, thinking it to be yet another one of her admirers. It wouldn't have been the first time a random citizen sent her a correspondence proclaiming their undying love for her. The Captain of the Samurai had yet to fathom why people took such fascination in her, but even if she was looking to court someone, it certainly wouldn't be a random stranger. Signum had already set her sights on someone else. Someone with blonde hair and who looked especially good in green robes.

Upon reading the note, the parchment was immediately crumpled in her fist and slammed against Signum's desk with a earthshaking boom. Agito, the little fire sprite napping at the time in the adjoining room, jolted awake at the sound and immediately came to investigate. Rubbing the sleep from her eyes as she entered Signum's office, Agito caught sight of the pinkette's back, the Captain of the Samurai storming out of her office in a rage. Noticing the crumpled parchment amongst the still unopened mail, Agito smoothed out the letter and read it.

_You something that belongs to me._

_This time your master will not be there to help you._

_Levantine will be mine by the next full moon._

_Cypha of Hückebein_

* * *

_**A/N:**__ Yes, this chapter wasn't Signum/Shamal specific, but even so, I know some of you have been wondering about Hayate and what she's been up to. And now you know. :P Poor Zafira, caught in the crossfire. XD_

_Victoria Dahlgrün is a character first introduced in the ViVid manga series. She has no real affiliation or relation to Shamal, but for the purposes of this story, I have made it seem so._

_Cypha of Hückebein is a character first introduced in the Force manga series. She is known for her duel with Signum of which she wins, nearly killing Signum._

_For those of you __unfamiliar with the non-English words, I have translated them below._

_Ile = No_

_Wolkenritter = Cloud Knights (German)_

_For an explanation of Japanese honorifics (eg. [name]-sama), please check out (take out the spaces): wiki / Japanese _ honorifics_


	6. Skeleton in the Closet

**A Samurai's Pledge**

_**A/N**__: Thank you all for your understanding and patience in the delay of this chapter. Things should be back on track now and I don't foresee any further delays in the regular posting schedule._

_For those of you who've left unsigned reviews, see my replies below:_

_ trumm12345 - Thanks for the comment. ^^ I was a bit surprised that there weren't more Signum x Shamal stories, so I'll definitely be posting to this one for a while. Hehe. As for the delay in this chapter, I had some family issues that had to be dealt with, which is why this chapter didn't come out on schedule. Always check on my profile if chapters don't get posted like normal. I post updates on there to keep my readers up to date._

_ Humble Anoymous - Thanks for the review! :) Yes, the action and drama is about to heat up! As for Zafira, well, that's anyone's guess. Lol._

_ Love thus story - Thanks for the comment. :) Fear not, you will be seeing Subaru and Tea again, shortly. Everyone will get their turn. ;)_

_For those of you who left unsigned reviews, see my replies below:_

_**Disclaimer**__: The characters and the worlds I write in do not belong to me. The stories that I write are intended for entertainment purposes. I do not make any money from them._

* * *

*** ~ Chapter 6: Skeleton in the Closet ~ ***

Signum walked briskly through the quiet streets of the capital city. It was night time now, most, if not all of the city folk at home and asleep in their beds. Midnight patrol was Signum's favorite time to patrol, it being the quietest of patrols in general. But tonight, the Captain of the Samurai found not the peace nor the quiet she usually got during this time of the day. Her mind was reeling, uncontrollably, and had been since she received that blasted letter just over a week ago.

Signum paused in her step. Looking up at the clear sky, the moon, halved in its essence, shone brightly above her.

_Levantine will be mine by the next full moon._

The pinkette growled, Signum's jaw clenching as her white knuckled fist lashed out at the closest thing to her. Stone wall. Signum currently stood at a T-junction, between four houses, in one of the many back alleys in the Middle District. The blooming of pain in her hand slowly calmed the swordswoman, frustration and anxiety draining off of her like water running off of a duck's back. The samurai sighed in annoyance, mentally berating herself.

This was not knightly behaviour. But even so, Signum couldn't but feel edgy right now. She needed to talk to someone about her troubles. To get it all out. Or they would slowly eat her from the inside out.

Looking down at her now bruised fist, a certain blonde haired, green robed head attendant came to Signum's mind. The last couple of weeks had been most enlightening when it came to Shamal, somehow the two of them finding themselves in the most awkward of situations together. Signum smiled. She still remembered the feeling of holding the healer around the waist, in their tumble in the Imperial Cellar weeks ago. It was... nice.

Signum scowled. Too bad the interaction only went as far as that. Since then, both of them were a bit nervous around each other. A funny, yet not unpleasant nervousness in Signum's opinion. But still, Signum hoped they would soon get past that awkwardness and onto more... exciting things.

A shift in the air.

Levantine was unsheathed.

"Come out and face me," Signum said, her voice commanding like a sonic boom in the quiet night.

For a moment, all that answered her was silence. Then, from the alleyway to her left, emerged a hooded figure shrouded in shadow.

"You're as good as they say."

From the sound of the person's voice, Signum guessed them to be a woman. There was an edge, a dangerous edge, in the woman's tone which caused Signum to be on alert. The woman's voice was like a finely crafted blade, sharp and cutting. The hooded one stopped just out of slashing range from the samurai captain's sword.

Signum's narrowed her eyes. "It is rather late to be out for a walk."

A laugh.

"Your concern is misplaced," the woman said in amusement.

Signum couldn't yet make out the woman's face, but she could tell they were grinning.

"I can handle myself. It is you who should be worried."

The samurai squared herself to the other. "Why is that?"

That blasted grin again.

"You've received my letter?"

Signum lashed out in a rage instantly. The Captain of the Samurai roared as Levantine sliced through air, her original target having moved out of the way faster than any normal human should have been able to. Without skipping a beat, Signum darted after her opponent, slashing up and down, left and right any moment she got. Each and every time, she missed by a hair's breadth, something which only infuriated her more.

_CLANK!_

Swords crossed, Levantine screeching against a blade that Signum had ever seen before. Longer and thicker than any samurai sword should be, the grip was thinner than the width of the blade, and protected by a spiked knuckle guard in the shape of a crescent moon. Moonlight shone brightly upon both combatants, their dance of swords taking them out into the middle of the empty street without them noticing. It was here Signum caught sight of long blonde hair and an amber coloured eye. A brown leather eye patch stretched across her opponent's right eye.

Realizing what the pinkette was staring at, the cloaked figure smirked. "Recognize me now?"

The woman, in a mighty show of strength, shoved Signum hard, the samurai stumbling backwards on her heels, barely managing to stay upright.

"I owe you for this one," Cypha of Hückebein said, referring to her eye. "That and my master's death."

Signum gritted her teeth, her grip on Levantine going even tighter.

"Or maybe I should be thanking you for that?"

By now, nearby patrolling samurai had heard the scuffle and were running in their direction. It wasn't hard to make out the clashing of weaponry, especially at this hour, the streets being almost as quiet as a graveyard.

"Consider this your only warning," Cypha said in all arrogance.

To Signum, Cypha's words were like corrupted taint, the more she spouted, the more Signum wanting nothing more than to wipe that smug smile off the woman's face. Or cut it off. Preferably cutting it off.

"Things will only get worse from here."

Signum darted forward again, at the same time Cypha pulled her cloak off her back and tossed it at the samurai captain like a net. By the time Signum's samurai caught up to her, Cypha was long gone, the only evidence she was actually here at all being the scowl on Signum's angered face, the shredded cloak, and the small crack in Levantine's blade.

* * *

Shamal was ecstatic. It was the dawn of a new day, one she had been looking forward to for over a week. After replying back to the message from her cousin, she was delighted to get another response back, confirming their meeting a week later. That time being now, here she was, in the Midori-ya Cafe sitting at her regular table, all the while nibbling on breakfast delicacies as she awaited the arrival of her long lost cousin.

"Is that the White Devil?" came a hushed whisper from the table behind Shamal.

Shamal's gaze rose from her plate to the door to the Cafe. There she spotted two familiar assassins in the doorway.

"Look! It's the Thunder Reaper!"

The Empress' Head Attendant stifled a giggle behind her hand as the two said assassins nonchalantly walked through Midori-ya's doors as if they were regular customers. Well, the White Devil walked in like that. The Thunder Reaper on the other hand, looked a tad bit uncomfortable with all the attention they were getting.

"Maybe this wasn't such a good idea," the Thunder Reaper said quietly, pulling at her collar. She was starting to sweat with the amount of eyes on them right now. Her partner chuckled.

"You said you were hungry," the White Devil said, grinning. "And I couldn't think of any other place nearby which had great food." Violet eyes were filled with mirth.

"When I said I was hungry, I didn't mean to come here to eat!" the Thunder Reaper hissed to her companion. Looking back to everyone staring at them, she bowed politely in acknowledgement. The Thunder Reaper almost squeaked when an arm wrapped around her shoulder and pulled her flush against a body she knew very well.

"You're so cute Thunder Reaper-_sama_."

The flush on the black assassin's face was very noticeable, even with the amount of black covering her up. Shamal could only giggle more. Those two were so precious like that.

"Is this seat taken?"

The healer's attention snapped back from her silly friends to the person now standing next to her table. It took but a moment for Shamal to register blonde hair, tears instantly filling her vision as she sprang to her feet and tackled her guest.

"Victoria-chan!" Shamal exclaimed, hugging her long lost relative tightly.

Strong arms wrapped around her shoulders and hugged back. "It's been a while Shamal-san. You look good."

For the next few moments, nothing understandable came out of Shamal's mouth, the Empress' Head Attendant overcome by emotions she never realized she had. Victoria was patient though, rubbing her shoulders soothingly, telling her it was alright. By the time Shamal calmed down enough to talk, and they sat down, the healer immediately frowned upon sight of a brown leather eye patch covering her cousin's right eye.

"Oh this?" Victoria said, a hand raising to touch the eye patch. An amber eye blinked. "Many things have happened since we last saw each other ten years ago. This among other things." Victoria smiled sadly.

Shamal reached across the table to hold her cousin's hand. She smiled encouragingly. "That's alright," Shamal said. "We've got time to catch up. How about you start at the beginning?"

* * *

_**A/N:**__ Despite having read the Force manga a bit (just for the Signum and Cypha fight), I still don't have a comfortable feel of Cypha's personality. As such, I've taken some liberties with her character, so expect Cypha to be OOC for this story._

_For an explanation of Japanese honorifics (eg. [name]-sama), please check out (take out the extra spaces and brackets): ( h t t (p) ) : / / en . (w)(i)(k)(i)(p)edia . (o) r g / wiki / Japanese_honorifics_


	7. Ying and Yang

**A Samurai's Pledge**

_**A/N**__: And the next chapter is here! This is one of the shorter chapters, but a necessary one. You'll see why soon enough. ;)_

_I've tried to keep everyone as close as possible to their characters in the anime though I'm sure there will be a few OOC moments._

_For those of you who left unsigned reviews, see my replies below:_

_ trumm12345 – Thanks for your review and your kind words. ^^ Things are somewhat back to normal with the family and will only get better from here. :)_

_ Love thus story – Thanks for your review. ^^ Very nice poetry you got there. :) The part with Shamal actually happens the morning after the incident between Signum and Cypha. Hehe, sneaky Cypha. :P _

_Guest – Thanks for the review. ^^ This story updates on a monthly basis right now, but hopefully in the near future I can speed that up a bit when I have more time. :)_

_**Disclaimer**__: The characters and the worlds I write in do not belong to me. The stories that I write are intended for entertainment purposes. I do not make any money from them._

* * *

*** ~ Chapter 7: Ying and Yang ~ ***

"Ne, Rein."

The said silver haired sprite looked at the Empress. "Hayate-sama?" Rein currently sat on the railing of the Empress' bedroom balcony, watching people mill about the capital city, going about their daily tasks.

The Empress frowned, her chin resting against her palm, her elbow propped up against her desk near the foot of her bed. She stared blankly in Rein's direction, deep in thought. "Have you noticed something... different... lately?"

It was a calm day in the capital city of Japan, the Empress resigning herself to a dull day of paperwork. Since the JS incident, things had been relatively calm in the country, aside from the regular thugs and hooligans trying to stir up trouble. But of course, that was of no concern, for Signum and her samurai made sure nothing bad came of that. All in all, things were boring. And Hayate hated being bored.

"Different?" Rein looked back at the Middle District, thinking about the past few days. "Are you talking about Signum-san and Shamal-san?"

A pair of cool blue eyes rose to meet Rein's gaze. The Empress chuckled flatly, sighing. "Ping pong!"

Something had happened a couple of days ago, something Hayate couldn't quite put her finger on yet. First off there was Signum, her trusted bodyguard and the head of her personal knights and guardians. Unlike her usual self, the pinkette had become distracted, irritable and just plain illusive.

The first time Hayate noticed this was when Signum submitted her latest report from midnight patrol route. According to the report, the samurai captain had crossed paths with a lingering Numbers assassin, mostly likely a stray left over from the JS incident. Knowing Jail Scaglietti, it wouldn't have been surprising if they missed one or two of them. When questioned about it, Signum assured the Empress the matter was well under control, and that she would report again when more progress was made. Since then, the swordswoman rarely hung around the Imperial Palace anymore, and when she did, Signum was always in the most foul of moods.

Then there was Shamal.

Hayate had never seen Shamal happier than in these past few days. At first, the brunette thought that she and Signum had finally hooked up, both of them proclaiming their undying love for one another. While disappointed that did not happen, the Empress was very happy to learn of her Head Attendant's reunion with a long lost family member just days prior. Hayate knew was it was like to lose family, people you cherished dearly. So to learn one had survived after all this time, the Empress was ecstatic for the blonde.

"Have you asked Agito-chan about Signum-san?"

The Empress flinched when she caught herself daydreaming again. She turned to Rein once more. "Have you?"

Rein smiled. "Ile," the tiny sprite said. "It would be intruding of me."

Hayate's eyebrows went straight up. "Oh?" she said, clearly surprised. "Since when?"

Rein wasn't known for respecting other people's privacy. Much. Especially if they were family.

The little guardian blushed. "Since forever!" she said, indignant.

"Uh huh." Hayate grinned.

A pout.

"What?" Rein demanded, not liking the look on her Mistress' face.

"Oh nothing," was the Empress' reply. Her grin went even wider.

"_Hayate!_"

The brunette giggled. Rein was so much fun to tease.

"I was just thinking," the Empress began. She sighed dreamily, staring off into space. "My Rein is growing up so fast."

A sniffle.

Hayate wiped away an imaginary tear from her cheek for added effect.

"Hey!" Rein exclaimed, jumping up from her spot to float over to the Empress. "I was already grown up!" This was not fair. Hayate could be such a meanie sometimes!

"Oh sure you were," the Empress said with a smirk. She then proceeded to go back to reading the scrolls on her desk.

"Haaaaaayaaaaateeeee!" Rein whined. Ohhhhh! Rein really hated when Hayate did this!

"Ano..."

Both the Empress and Rein paused in their movements to look at the door.

"My apologies Hayate-sama," Shamal said, bowing respectively. She stood at the threshold to the Empress' room. "I didn't mean to interrupt..."

"Shamal!" Hayate exclaimed exuberantly. She rose from her chair, swiftly crossing the distance between them and hugged her Head Attendant. "Just the person I was looking for!"

"Eh?" Shamal was clearly not expecting such a reaction from the Empress. She hugged the brunette back after a moment. "Hayate-sama?"

"I needed a break from paperwork," the Empress said. She winked at the healer.

Shamal giggled. "I'm glad to be of service, Empress."

Hayate smiled. "So what brings you to my humble abode?" The Empress led the green robed attendant to her balcony, both of them instantly enjoying the warm sun and cool breeze as they overlooked the capital city.

"Well, you see..."

The younger of the two quirked an eyebrow. In all her life, the Empress had never known her Head Attendant to be this... shy. That is, not unless she was around a certain pink haired samurai captain.

"What is it Shamal? By the gods! Are you pregnant!?"

"W-What?" Shamal squawked, flushing immediately. "Who told you that?!"

Hayate's teasing expression dropped. "You mean you are?" Blue eyes went wide.

"Ile!" Shamal exclaimed. "Ile Hayate-sama!" An exasperated breath. "Ah mou! Stop spreading rumors like that! Some of the other attendants still don't believe me when I tell them I wasn't born of your tome like previous Emperors' guardians."

The Empress chuckled heartily, remembering that particular tidbit of gossip. The brunette may or may not have joked about her guardians and knights being born of her Tome of the Night Sky many moons ago, as was her predecessors' guardians in previous times. Coincidentally, at that time, a young and relatively new attendant was in her room, tidying up.

Upon hearing the Empress' words and not realizing she was just playing around, gossip soon spread through the Imperial Palace like wildfire, Hayate's knights on the receiving end of some mighty funny looks. To this day, that particular rumor still circulated among the ranks of lower attendants, even after the Empress herself had cleared up that misunderstanding.

The Empress took a deep breath to calm her racing heart. "Like that's a really bad thing," she said. "Here I thought you were going to tell me you were bearing the child of someone aside from Si-Ack!"

The Empress grimaced, holding the back of her head where a fresh bump was now swelling. She turned to glare at the little one hovering nearby.

"Bad Hayate!" Rein chided, looking at her Mistress frowning.

A sharp reprimand was ready to roll off of the Empress' tongue for that insubordination, Hayate only pausing when she caught sight of Rein motioning to Shamal. The little guardian made a shushing motion with her hand. Realizing what she had been about to say, Hayate silently berated herself for what would have slipped out had the sprite not intervened. By some miracle of the gods, thankfully, Shamal seemed oblivious to that slip up.

"Rein-chan!" Shamal scolded. "That was uncalled for! Apologize!"

For her part, the silver haired guardian acted like an unrepentant child, crossing her arms over her chest and turning her gaze away, pouting. The blonde could only shake her head, knowing of the little one's erratic tantrums at times, turning her attention to the more level headed one between the fighting pair.

"Are you okay Hayate-sama?" The healer put a hand on the Empress' head, a cool sensation running through the brunette as Shamal's healing magics flowed through her.

"Ah hai," Hayate said, giving the blonde an appreciative smile. "Much better thanks."

"That's what I'm here for," Shamal said, smiling back.

"Surely that's not all you came here for?" The Empress gave her Head Attendant a look.

At that reminder, the Shamal's expression went back to serious again. "Oh right," she said, looking away nervously. "Well, you see, the thing is..."

Both Rein and the Empress shared a glance.

"My cousin," Shamal said after much delay. "She wanted to meet with you, you being the closest thing I have to family left. And, well-"

"Of course!" Hayate exclaimed, startling the anxious healer. "I'd love too! That would be wonderful."

Shamal breathed in relief. "Thank you so much, Hayate-sama."

The Empress' opinion mattered greatly to Shamal. Despite growing up with the girl now turned amazing woman and ruler of all Japan, Shamal still felt nervous when asking for things like this.

"Are you going to invite Signum-san too?" Rein was the one to ask that question.

Shamal blushed at the name of her secret crush, soon after frowning. "I don't know if I should," she said sadly.

The look on the blonde's face was heart breaking. Hayate couldn't stand it.

"She's been in such an awful mood lately. I'm worried that I may just aggravate her more," Shamal continued.

"Nonsense," the Empress said. While she too shared Shamal's concern about the distracted samurai, Hayate wasn't about to let the swordswoman ruin such a precious moment of Shamal's.

"Tell your cousin we'd all be happy to meet with her."

"But Signum-san-"

"I'll take care of her," Hayate said putting a hand on Shamal's shoulder. She gave the healer a gentle squeeze. "Leave that to me. Just let me know when and where the meeting will be, and we'll be there."

"Thank you again, Hayate-sama." Shamal hugged the brunette tightly.

"Anything for you Shamal," Hayate said.

And she meant it.

* * *

_**A/N:**__ For those of you unfamiliar with the non-English words, I have translated them below._

_Hai = Yes_

_Ile = No_

_Ano = Umm_

_Ne = A word, when used in certain contexts, gets the attention of someone._

_For an explanation of Japanese honorifics (eg. [name]-sama), please check out: wiki/Japanese_honorifics_


	8. Love is my Enemy

**A Samurai's Pledge**

_**A/N**__: And another chapter is up!_

_I've tried to keep everyone as close as possible to their characters in the anime though I'm sure there will be a few OOC moments. Comments and reviews are much appreciated. Enjoy!_

_For those of you who left unsigned reviews, see my replies below:_

_ love thus story – Thanks for the review! ^^ Drama you say? You have no idea. Lol. This story still has many chapters to go, so fear not, the end won't be for a while yet. :)_

_ trumm12345 – Thanks for the comment. ^^ Things are doing much better now thanks. I appreciate the support. :)_

_**Disclaimer**__: The characters and the worlds I write in do not belong to me. The stories that I write are intended for entertainment purposes. I do not make any money from them._

* * *

*** ~ Chapter 8: Love is my Enemy ~ ***

Shamal was ready to have a nervous breakdown.

Here she sat, in the north western courtyard of the Imperial Palace on the second floor, wringing her hands together restlessly. It was the most secluded of the courtyards on this level, Shamal having forgotten its official name in her nervous anticipation. To her left sat Victoria, the other blonde calmly drinking from a porcelain cup of tea, a plate of western biscuits sitting untouched on the table in front of them.

The reason for Shamal's current nervousness?

Today was the day she would introduce her cousin to her extended family.

The north western courtyard overlooked the lake at the back of the Imperial property, the open aired patio furnished with five glass tables with four chairs to match each table. It easily fit a group of thirty people comfortably. On occasion, Shamal would wander up here for the peace and quiet. And the view. It wasn't hard to settle one's thoughts up here, yet such a serene scene today did little to calm the Head Attendant's frayed nerves.

What would Victoria think of the others? What would the others think of Victoria?

"Calm yourself, cousin."

Shamal jumped at the sound of Victoria's voice, looking to the other woman with flushed cheeks of embarrassment.

"I'm sure they'll get here soon." The other blonde smiled at Shamal, patting her gently on arm. "I'm excited to meet them."

"I am too. For you that is."

Shamal didn't know how her cousin did it. What was her secret? Victoria was so calm and composed right now. Then again, Victoria was always the more unflappable of the two of them. Wringing her hands yet again, Shamal did her best to swallow down her fear and anxiety as they waited for the others to arrive.

The Empress and her knights were not related by blood (Hayate and Vita being the only exception), but the bonds they shared brought them closer than any blood related family could ever be. And because of that fact, Shamal worried greatly about this meeting. Their opinion meant so much to her, more than she often let on. If they didn't accept Victoria, or if Victoria didn't accept her extended family, Shamal didn't know what she was going to do. The sound of booted feet snapped Shamal out of her thoughts.

The Empress, along with Rein, Vita, Zafira, Agito and Signum rounded the corner moments later, taking Shamal's breath away. Violet coloured eyes immediately sought out a specific pair of blue eyes, the healer's heart fluttering at the sight of a certain pink haired samurai. Had it really been that long since she'd seen Signum last?

As if sensing she was being looked at, Signum's gaze raised to Shamal's, the soft expression on the swordswoman's face making Shamal's heart melt even further.

Then Signum's gaze shifted to Victoria and everything went to hell.

* * *

Had this not been a mandatory meeting requiring her presence, Signum would have been elsewhere and certainly not travelling through the hallways of the Imperial Palace. The samurai captain was no closer to finding her previous master's killer, and the fact that she could find no trace of this Cypha of Hückebein since their first face to face meeting almost a month ago, drove Signum crazy to no end.

The pinkette barely registered the presence of the others with her, those being the Empress (who was leading their group), Rein, Vita, Zafira and Agito who trailed behind the brunette. Signum was at the back of the group, her body moving as if on auto pilot, the samurai only thinking enough on the present moment to ensure she didn't accidentally stray somewhere else while following her current Mistress. It wasn't until sunlight blinded her did Signum's attention focus on where they were headed. It was the north western courtyard on the second floor, two occupants already taking up residence at one of the many glass tables on the white stone patio.

The samurai captain couldn't but feel a spike of anger run through her at this realization. Why in the blazes was she here when she could have been out searching for her master's killer? Just who was this stupid bureaucrat who required-

The moment Signum's gaze landed on Shamal, her current train of thought ceased. The blonde Head Attendant looked as magnificent as she always did, Signum realizing just how much she missed the woman over these past few weeks. She'd been so caught up in her own matters that she barely saw the healer. And when she did, she frowned silently knowing that those meetings were less than friendly.

Signum's expression softened the longer she stared at Shamal. The pink haired samurai smiled slightly. Gods, she missed Shamal so much. How long had it been since they last sat down to talk jovially? Pieces clicked in Signum's head, the pinkette vaguely remembering the Empress telling her about some missing relative of Shamal's. This was what this meeting was about. Shamal wanted her to meet her family. And Signum had never felt so humbled by that. The samurai captain looked away for a moment, but then looked back ahead.

She could do this.

Just for today. Just for now.

She could do this for Shamal.

It was the least Signum could do for the blonde considering how she treated the woman over the past few weeks. But when her gaze moved from her secret love to the one whom she assumed to be Shamal's long lost relative, all coherent thoughts stopped. In their place was only rage.

"KISAMA!"

* * *

"KISAMA!"

Cypha was just as shocked as Signum to see her here at this meeting. When Shamal told her that she had invited her family to this pow wow, the one eyed blonde didn't think the samurai captain was included in that. It was of no consequence however, for Cypha already knew how this would end.

"I will end you!"

Shamal yelped in horror and surprise at the terrifying twist of events. Signum moved so fast. One moment Shamal was sitting next to her cousin at their table, and in the next, the glass table they shared was cleaved in half, a line of fire separating herself and Victoria. Signum lunged at her cousin.

Cypha smirked, easily dodging the enraged samurai captain's first attack, drawing her sword at the same time. She rose from her crouch ten feet away from her previous spot, grinning.

"You say interesting things, knight."

In place of the blade Cypha had when she first crossed paths with Signum over a month ago, was a regular sized samurai sword with a black blade. Signum's Levantine flamed with orange and red fire, casting a demonic undertone to Signum's already savage look. Upon realizing her first attack missed, Signum charged at her target again, a feral cry erupting from her throat as their blades crossed in front of them. That attack sent Cypha skidding back on her heels a further ten feet, Signum relenting not one inch.

"Master!" Agito cried out in shock. The current sight of Signum horrified the fire sprite, the little winged guardian not knowing what she should do. Logic dictated that she help her master in her fight against her opponent. But in her heart, Agito knew something was not right about all of this.

"Signum!" Hayate exclaimed, equally horrified. "Stop that this instant!"

Never before had Signum lost her composure like this. What was supposed to be a joyous occasion had quickly turned into a nightmare. While the Empress knew Signum was never one to act without reason, Hayate was having a very difficult time understanding what could have possibly set her knight off like this. To think the pinkette was capable of such savagery was world shaking. Even during the JS Incident Signum had never resorted to this level of violence.

"Signum! Victoria!" With the help of Zafira, Shamal got to her feet, having fallen out of her chair in shock at Signum's erratic behaviour. By now, the fight between the pair, her cousin and her secret love, had pushed to the very balcony edge of the patio, a destructive wake of broken glass and stone left in their deadly dance.

Blow after blow, Cypha parried and blocked, and blow after blow, Signum only got further enraged. It was like the events of all those years ago were repeating itself, Signum's only thought being to kill the one in front of her. Everything else faded away into a haze of white noise.

After another particularly brutal slash, one of which Cypha blocked again, the blonde swordsman almost laughed out loud. To think the tiny pinkette she had met all those years ago had gotten so strong, truly excited her. Seeing an opening, Cypha lashed out at the samurai's left, only for Signum to barely block the attack with Levantine's scabbard. A quick flip of the wrist and their blades clashed again, both combatants pushing back from each other to leave a ten foot space between them.

"**Schlangeform!"**

Cypha had only a moment to blink before the tip of the samurai's sword zipped at her face like a biting snake. She barely managed to dodge to the side, Levantine leaving a shallow slice in her left cheek. The click of metal was her only indication that Signum's blade had returned to sword form before the samurai attacked again.

"Rein, I need my Tome."

Rein's head whipped towards her Mistress in fright. "W-what?"

The Tome of the Night Sky was not something Hayate used on a daily basis. In fact, the last time she used it at all was during the tail end of the JS Incident. Never one to abuse power, the Empress only resorted to using her powers when of the utmost emergency. And right now, such was the thing.

"Hayate-sama?"

Something was not right with Shamal's cousin.

As much as the Empress hated to think so, just watching the fight progress so far, Hayate could tell something was terribly wrong. Any regular person would have been overpowered by Signum, by her first strike in fact. Yet here this woman was, fighting on par with the samurai captain, and she hadn't even broken a sweat yet. The Empress couldn't quite put her finger on it, but something dark and ancient emanated from the blonde swordswoman. And it made the brunette shiver uncontrollably.

_CRASH!_

A fiery explosion erupted on the far end of the north western courtyard, sending molten stone up into the air, the debris soon after raining down upon Hayate and the rest of her knights.

"Klarer Wind! Protect against it!"

**"Yes!"**

Shields of green materialized overhead, deflecting away the deadly barrage of flaming projectiles which would have most certainly caused a great deal of injury. Supported by Agito's Brennenkugel, the Empress and the rest of her knights had nothing to fear when it came to fist sized chunks of burning stone. Shamal however, had everything to fear. Her cousin and her secret love were fighting in an all out battle to the death. And she had no idea why.

When the smoke cleared, neither swordswoman was in sight, the sounds of battle echoing below in the forest surrounding the Imperial Palace's western edge.

* * *

Cypha grimaced, clutching at her right arm, her back flush against the nearest tree. Blood stained the coat of her right sleeve, liquid crimson running the length of her limb. Her sword was stuck blade down in the ground next to her.

That was intense.

It amazed the one eyed swordswoman how rage magnified Signum's strikes. One attack had broken through her defenses and nearly severed her arm. She would have died had her body still been human, made of flesh and bone. But as she was, she wasn't so much human anymore. And this near fatal wound was already starting to heal itself. Cypha could feel the skin of her arm re-knitting already.

A smirk.

A long time had passed since she had a decent fight. Now it was time to finally get serious.

Pulling a small dagger from her coat pocket, Cypha held it up in front of her as the sound of booted feet trampling through leaves neared her location.

"**Engage K****ö****nig 944."**

The dagger was trust into Cypha's palm.

"**React."**

A funnel of dark magic shot up into the sky, scattering birds and all wildlife currently occupying the imperial forests.

Signum skidded to a halt upon sight of her opponent. Shamal's cousin now wielded two swords, a short sword and a long sword, the longer of the two she recognized from their first meeting. With blades of pitch black, both swords had a grip protected by a spiked white marble knuckle guard in the shape of a crescent moon.

An amber coloured eye rose to meet Signum's gaze, before it dipped down to examine the sword in the samurai's hand. Over the course of their battle, the crack in Levantine's blade had progressed further, spider web-like cracks running the length of the blade itself now along with multiple hairline fractures. The samurai captain seemed unaware of the damage her sword had taken, her dark glare still focused on Cypha.

Cypha smirked again. "I am no longer interested in that weak blade of yours," she said.

Signum gritted her teeth at the insult.

"Now that I have König, the poison that will kill the world, I no longer have any further need for it." Another smirk. "Or you."

"Levantine!"

"**Jawohl!"**

Levantine's cracked blade blazed with fire again.

"These twin blades slay Legendary Weapon Wielders," Cypha said. "If you think you can stop them, go ahead."

Signum roared as she lurched at Cypha again, slashing with her flaming blade. Before her attack could connect, wires wrapped around the samurai's body, binding her arms to her sides.

"Signum!"

Blue feral eyes glared at the owner of the third voice.

"Stop this Signum!" It was Shamal. "Please!"

Signum's gaze showed no recognition of the blonde healer.

The Empress' head healer was in tears, having just barely caught up to the pair in the Imperial forest. She stood twenty feet away from the duelling swordswomen, the trees in between them blocking her cousin's massive blades from Shamal's sight. To the Empress' Head Attendant, it looked as if Signum were charging her cousin who was unarmed. Little did she realize how wrong she was.

With her heart torn between backing up her secret love and defending her cousin, Shamal chose the latter and immobilized the less than rational samurai with Klarer Wind's wires. Shamal gritted her teeth, pulling with everything she had on her wires to keep Signum from advancing another step closer to Victoria.

"Please don't hurt her!" Shamal pleaded, her tears blinding her to the true nature of the situation.

Cypha, facing no such restrictions, grinned. "Do you finally understand why you can't defeat me?" By now, her once almost severed arm had completely healed, the one eyed swordswoman raising her long sword to the samurai captain's ensnared chest.

Rage filled eyes snapped back to Cypha at that motion, Signum struggling further against Shamal's bindings.

"Die!"

König thrust forward, breaking through armor and flesh, turning red.

A gasping breath.

Levantine fell to the ground, its blade shattering into pieces the moment it connected with the earth.

"Farewell, knight," Cypha said, pulling back on her blade. She very much enjoyed the squelching sound it made upon being freed from flesh. "Our sword battle was a close one, but I win at killing."

Shamal stumbled backwards with a jerk when Klarer Wind's wires suddenly went slack. An audible thump sounded ahead, the blonde healer quickly wiping her tears to survey the scene again. All of the colour drained out of Shamal's face when her violet gaze caught sight of Signum's motionless body on the forest ground. She had been too far away to hear what was said between the two swordswomen, her tears blurring much of what she could actually see.

Throwing caution to the wind, Shamal immediately dashed towards the samurai's prone form, tripping on twigs and above ground roots. Klarer Wind's wires detracted along the way. When she finally slide to a halt next to the pinkette, her heart stopped.

"S-S-Signum?"

Shamal couldn't breath.

In spite of its magical enhancements, ones cast by Shamal herself, Signum's armor did little in protecting its wearer. Gashes and scratches littered the pinkette's armored body, both shallow and deep. The samurai captain herself was flat on her back, crimson pooling around her, soaking into the earth, gushing freely from a wound in the middle of her chest. Crimson ran down the length of Signum's chin, the streak of red originating from her lips, the pink haired warrior deathly silent. The samurai's eyes were covered in the shadow of her hair. Levantine lay next to the swordswoman, its blade shattered, with its pieces scattered all over the forest floor.

Victoria was no where in sight.

"S-Signum?"

Klarer Wind immediately lit up with power, Shamal's shaking hands hovering over Signum's worst wound. Tears spilled freely from her eyes again as the first touch of the magic verified what she already knew.

There was no heartbeat.

* * *

_**A/N:**__ This battle is heavily based on the fight between Signum and Cypha in the manga Force to the point of borrowing some lines. You can find that battle here (take out the extra spaces and brackets): (w) (w) (w) . mangareader . (n) (e) (t) / 1173 / mahou-senki-lyrical-nanoha-force . (h) (t) (m) (l)_

_For those of you confused, Cypha and Victoria are the same person. The question on whether Cypha is the true identity, or Victoria, will be revealed later. :p_

_For those of you unfamiliar with the non-English words, I have translated them below._

_Kisama = You (usually used to show the speaker's extreme hostility / outrage towards the addressee) _

_Schlangeform = Snake Form_ _(German) _

_Brennenkugel = Burning Ball (German) _

_K__ö__nig = King (German)_

_Jawohl = Yes/Roger (German)_

_For an explanation of Japanese honorifics (eg. [name]-sama), please check out: (h) (t) (t) (p) : / / wiki / Japanese_honorifics_


	9. Wounded Soul

**A Samurai's Pledge**

_**A/N**__: The next chapter is up!_

_I've tried to keep everyone as close as possible to their characters in the anime though I'm sure there will be a few OOC moments. _

_For those of you who left unsigned reviews, see my replies below:_

_trumm12345 – Thanks for the comment! Fear not, all is not lost for Signum. Yet. Lol. You'll see what I mean when you read this chapter. :P_

_ Love thus story – Thanks for the review. ^^ You should know by now how much I love cliffhangers. Hehe. So really, that shouldn't have been a surprise. :P Fear not, Signum won't die just yet. She's a main character after all. XD_

_**Disclaimer**__: The characters and the worlds I write in do not belong to me. The stories that I write are intended for entertainment purposes. I do not make any money from them._

* * *

*** ~ Chapter 9: Wounded Soul ~ ***

"They are called the Cursed Blades of Eclipse."

Imperial Scholar Scrya Yunno stood at the front of the room, this room one of many meeting rooms inside of the Imperial Palace. A large rectangular cherry wood table sat in the middle of the room, surrounded by chairs of matching design. The Empress sat at the far end of the table, farthest away from the blonde scholar, Rein and Agito sitting on the table itself in front of the brunette. Zafira sat on the ground, off to Hayate's right.

Also amongst this crowd were the White Devil and the Thunder Reaper. Having heard the commotion during their regular rounds in the capital city, the two assassins quickly returned to the Imperial Palace only to find disarray. The White Devil leaned back against the wall nearest the doors, her arms crossed over her chest. The Thunder Reaper sat at the table to Hayate's left.

"Originating from the ancient age of Belka," Yunno continued. "They were just a few out of many blades infused with the dark magic of the demon lord Eclipse."

A frown.

"Said to rival the Weapons of Legend in both power and magic, unlike the Weapons of Legend, they give their wielders near immortality in exchange for consuming their soul."

Agito gritted her teeth, her fists clenching tightly.

"According to the history books, about one thousand of those blades were ever created before the demon lord's destruction. But no two weapons were ever the same. Each blade varied in size and form. Upon the death of their wielder, however, it was said the blades were also destroyed."

"Apparently not," the White Devil huffed. Violet coloured eyes were dead serious. White gloved hands tightened into fists.

"I find it very hard to believe that the one Signum-san faced today was hundreds of years old. Even if she was _gifted_ with this semi immortality, she should have died by now. Ancient Belka was over a thousand years ago."

Yunno frowned again. "The weapons themselves could have been dormant all this time and weren't found up until recently," he said. A pale hand reached up to stroke his chin.

"Are you certain that's what they were?" The Thunder Reaper glanced at her partner before facing the blonde scholar again.

"No Legendary Weapon I've come across puts out quite the same... dark aura..." the Empress answered on Yunno's behalf. "I'm sure you two felt the same thing I did when you rushed back here."

The Thunder Reaper stared at the table, her maroon coloured eyes narrowing. Yes, she had felt it. So did the White Devil. Never in her life had the Thunder Reaper felt such cold heartlessness emanating from a weapon, far-a-less a person. She couldn't but shiver upon their return to the Imperial Palace for the brief seconds that that presence lingered, before it disappeared completely, without a trace.

"Is there anything else we should know about before tracking this person down?"

The White Devil stared at the imperial scholar, fingering the ruby pendant necklace she wore on top of white garb. The Thunder Reaper rose to her feet and walked across the room to join her partner. All the talking was pretty much done now. Especially when the White Devil had set her mind on this already.

"Do what you can to avoid a direct confrontation," the Imperial Scholar said. "Fight from a distance. If she can't get close to hit you, you should be fine."

"We'll do what we can."

Both of the assassins turned their backs on the others to leave.

"Nanoha-chan, Fate-chan, just one more thing."

Footsteps paused, heads turning, the White Devil and the Thunder Reaper looking back at the Empress.

The brunette pursed her lips looking at the table momentarily before raising her gaze again. "I have reason to believe this person is the same person who killed Signum's previous master before me."

"W-what?" Rein's head snapped towards the brunette, her mouth hanging open in shock.

Agito hugged herself, hunching forward with her eyes closed. After everything went to hell yesterday, as luck would have it, the fire sprite stumbled across the letter Signum received from a month ago again, during her aimless wanderings about the samurai's quarters while trying to order her thoughts. The moment she brought it to Hayate's attention, the Empress took one look at it before demanding this meeting take place.

Blood coloured eyes darkened.

Well this certainly made things more complicated.

"Does Shamal-san know?"

The Empress looked away, shaking her head. "And I'd like to keep it that way for a little bit longer. At least until we know more."

"For now," the White Devil said. She turned back to the door again, her expression even darker than before.

"I need her captured alive, Nanoha-chan," the Empress called out after the exiting assassins.

"I can make no promises," the White Devil said, pushing through the meeting room doors and finally taking her leave.

The Thunder Reaper watched her partner go before turning back to the Empress. "I'll see what we can do," she said. Black gloved fingers wrapped around a yellow magatama charm bracelet hanging off of the Thunder Reaper's wrist. "But I'm with Nanoha on this one."

Hayate nodded. "I understand."

* * *

"Why did you stop me?"

Shamal startled at the voice.

A day had passed since that nightmare of a meeting which left Signum nearly dead and her cousin AWOL. Had it been anyone else rushing to the almost fatally wounded samurai's side, had Shamal been just a few seconds later, the captain of the samurai would have surely died. Somehow the pinkette managed to hang onto life by a thread, giving Shamal the sparse few seconds she needed to save the swordswoman's life. The blonde healer was exhausted by the end if it, and it would be touch and go for the hours which followed, but now, a day later, the worst of it seemed to be over for the samurai captain. Unfortunately, Shamal couldn't say the same about Levantine.

Signum's trusted blade and weapon lay in pieces on the side table near the pinkette's bed. Yunno assured Shamal this was merely a temporary thing, the scholar saying that the mystical blade would fix itself in time as long as its wielder also healed themselves. But truth be told, none of them at the Imperial Palace under the Empress had ever seen a Legendary Weapon break like this. And that fact alone terrified the Empress' Head Attendant. The only exception to that was during the JS Incident when Fate and Nanoha had also been near death, Raging Heart and Bardiche flickering in and out of existence. But even then the assassins' weapons remained intact. Levantine was in pieces.

"Shamal!"

Shamal flinched at the harsh sounding of her own name. Violet eyes locked onto dark blue ones.

"Why did you stop me?" Signum repeated, in spite of the pain of her injuries and the dryness of her throat.

Even with her having been in the deep throes of rage during her near deadly fight, there would be no way that Signum couldn't recognize the feeling of Klarer Wind's wires. It wouldn't have been the first time the samurai had been ensnared by them. Though in previous cases, those fights hadn't been to the death.

"Shamal!"

The blonder healer jumped again, gripping a clump of her green robe tightly in white knuckled fists. She currently sat at Signum's bedside and had been there ever since yesterday, barely sleeping nor eating while watching over the injured pinkette.

"She is my Itoko, Signum!" Shamal exclaimed, a tiredness and weariness to her voice. "Did you really think I'd stand by and watch as you killed her!?"

"That is exactly what you should have done!" Signum spat, furious blue eyes narrowing at her present company. "Had you been anyone else, I would have slain you in your spot for your interference!"

Shamal felt like she'd been stabbed in the gut. She shook. "S-Signum-"

"Get out."

Another stab, this time to the heart.

"Signum, please-"

"I said _get out!_"

"Signum!"

"I don't know who you are anymore!"

A hard shove sent Shamal stumbling backwards for balance. When she regained her footing and looked up again, Signum was sitting up, just barely, shoulders hunched forward, rasping breaths escaping her lips. White sheets were crumpled around her waist, fresh bandages wrapped around most of her upper body. Sweat rolled down the samurai's cheek, the pinkette's brow furled tightly, a clear indication she was in pain. Signum clutched at the bandages wrapped around her chest.

Shamal was torn between going to her secret love's side and abiding by her wishes. But, before she knew what she was doing, she took a step forward. "Sig-"

A wet cough. Crimson spots stained white sheets, dribbling from chapped lips.

"Get out and never come back," Signum said in a shaking voice. Blue eyes refused to look up. "I want nothing to do with you."

"But Signum-"

"GET OUT!"

Signum grabbed the nearest thing to her, pulling back her arm to throw it at the blonde. It was Levantine's broken hilt.

A muffled sob reached Signum's ears before soft footsteps padded out of the room, the door thumping shut behind them. Through the door, the samurai could hear weeping, but she squashed down the rising feeling of agony and despair clawing up her chest. This was how things should be. At least, that's what she tried to convince herself of.

Staring at her broken weapon, the pinkette was surprised when droplets of water hit the shattered metal. How had everything suddenly gone so wrong? Signum did her best to ignore them, gritting her teeth even as a sob sounded on her own lips and tears spilled from her eyes. But as much as she tried to hold everything back, even she succumbed to weakness, and Signum cried.

* * *

_For those of you unfamiliar with the non-English words, I have translated them below._

_Itoko = Cousin_

_**A/N:**__ For an explanation of Japanese honorifics (eg. [name]-sama), please check out: wiki/Japanese_honorifics_


	10. Ripping at the Seams

**A Samurai's Pledge**

_**A/N**__: And another chapter is up!_

_I've tried to keep everyone as close as possible to their characters in the anime though I'm sure there will be a few OOC moments. Comments and reviews are much appreciated. Enjoy!_

_For those of you who left unsigned reviews, see my replies below:_

_ trumm12345 – Thanks for the review! ^^ Fear not, things between Signum and Shamal will not always be this dark and depressing. As much as I like to tease you readers at times, I'm not that mean. XD As for Fate and Nanoha, you'll just have to wait and see. What I can tell you is that some familiar faces will be showing up at the end of the story making an interesting twist. Hehe._

_ Guest – Thanks for the comment! Here's the next chapter for you. :) For a posting schedule of my stories, check out my profile. ^^_

_ Sammie-chan89 – Thanks for the reviews! Things are a bit rough for Signum and Shamal, but I have faith that things will work out in the end. :P_

_ love thus story – Thanks for the review. ^^ Hehe, I can be so evil, I know. XD While Nanoha and Fate will be getting more involved, so to speak, the main focus is still on Signum and Shamal, so you probably won't see what they're doing too much in the background. Don't worry, I haven't written them out of the story. ;)_

_**Disclaimer**__: The characters and the worlds I write in do not belong to me. The stories that I write are intended for entertainment purposes. I do not make any money from them._

* * *

*** ~ Chapter 10: Ripping at the Seams ~ ***

Agito hovered in front of Shamal's bedroom door. A small fist raised to the door, but the tiny fire sprite hesitated. Biting her lip after a few seconds of indecision, Agito pulled back her fist to knock, only for her knuckles to stop just short of making contact with the wooded surface. Agito lowered her fist.

She couldn't do it.

Not when she could clearly hear Shamal crying on the other side of the door.

* * *

_~ Yesterday ~_

It had been three days since Signum awoke, the samurai captain still recovering from her horrific injuries. Even with Shamal's healing magics, the samurai was confined to bed, her bandages changed every few hours. Agito didn't know why, but for some reason, the pinkette's wounds were not healing as fast as they should be. Levantine was still in pieces as well, something which no doubt added to Signum's already dark mood.

"But Master-"

"I told you to never mention that name again, Agito-san."

Agito frowned, her lips pursing as she sought out Signum's gaze. The samurai wouldn't look at her. Signum currently sat upright in bed, thanks to the assistance of one of Shamal's Deshi. But as quick as the man came, Shamal's Deshi left soon after. Lunch had been prepared and left on a tray next to Signum's bed.

The fire sprite hadn't seen the blonde head healer since Signum awoke. Since informing them all of Signum's awakening, only Shamal's Deshi came this close to the swordswoman, and only for brief moments of time. It was as if an invisible barrier had been put up around Signum's room, preventing her from visiting. Or perhaps, it wasn't so much a spell, but a person.

"Master," Agito tried again. "I don't understand. What has happened between you two that she now deserves your ire?"

Signum gritted her teeth, a fist clenching a clump of blanket on her lap. "That is none of your concern," she grunted after a long few heavy seconds.

"Master-"

"What happens between me and others is not your affair!" Signum exclaimed. "Speak nothing further of this, lest I banish you too!"

* * *

_~ Present ~_

Agito hung her head in shame, vowing to come back at another time. A time when perhaps her heart didn't feel so heavy. With deep reluctance, the fire sprite turned around and left.

On the other side of Shamal's bedroom door, the blonde healer sat in the middle of her bed and wept. Knees were pulled up to her chest, her arms hugging her legs as her face was buried in her knees. Her room was pitch black, the drapes blocking out the light of the stars.

It had been days since Shamal last saw Signum. After their spat, the healer couldn't bring herself to face the samurai anymore. So instead, she sent her Deshi to the pinkette, ensuring the swordswoman's recovery wouldn't be hindered by her presence. But the distance between them, was tearing at her heart.

It hurt.

It hurt so much to know Signum hated her.

It hurt so much to know that she caused Signum pain.

So wrapped up in her sorrow, Shamal failed to notice the opening of her bedroom balcony doors, and the pulling aside of curtains. It wasn't until a hand rested on her shoulder did the blonde healer jerk her head up to see she wasn't alone.

"V-Victoria..."

"Cousin."

_SMACK!_

Victoria's head whipped to the side, the other blonde stumbling backwards, holding her cheek. She blinked a few times to clear the stars hazing her vision, but the moment they faded, wires were already coiling around her body. One hard shove sent Victoria tumbling backwards into the wall back first, just barely managing to stay on her feet.

"How could you? How could you!" Shamal roared, rushing up to her prone cousin and grabbing her tightly by the collar of her shirt. "To Signum... you... you almost..."

Shamal struggled to breathe, tears clouding her vision again. Soon a sob escaped her lips, Shamal weakly leaning forward, her head resting against her cousin's shoulder. "You almost killed her..."

_Almost? _An amber coloured eye narrowed a fraction.

"I'm sorry, Cousin," Victoria said after a few seconds. "Everything happened so fast and I... I didn't have a chance to explain myself."

"Where were you!?" Shamal demanded, gathering up the last of her strength to look her cousin in the eye. "After all of this time, where were you!?"

Victoria looked away. "I was hiding," she admitted. In the darkness of Shamal's room, it was hard to make out Victoria's expression.

"Why?"

Silence.

"I was ashamed," the other blonde said finally. "When I saw her face, I just... I was so scared she was going to take you away from me like everything else."

The grip on Victoria's collar loosened a bit.

"Victoria? What do you mean?"

Victoria reluctantly met Shamal's gaze. She swallowed uncomfortably. "I didn't want her to hurt you... trying to get to me."

"I don't understand." Klarer Wind's wires retracted.

"That woman, that Signum-san you spoke of, was the same one who took my eye," Victoria said.

Shamal couldn't stop the gasp which escaped her lips. She took a step backwards in disbelief.

"Not only that," Victoria continued. "She killed the rest of our family, and nearly killed me too, years ago."

Shamal was shaking. This couldn't be true. What her cousin was saying couldn't be right. Signum was not a murderer. She wasn't-

"Some travelling merchants found me, near death, and nursed me back to health," Victoria pushed on. "And when I awoke next, I couldn't remember what happened before that. It took me years to remember who I was and who my family was. And when I did, I thought I was the only one left."

Victoria wrapped her arms around Shamal's shocked shoulders and pulled her close for a hug. "But then I found out you had survived, and came to find you as soon as I could."

"Why..." Shamal could barely breathe. "Why didn't you tell me this before?"

"Because it was in the past," Victoria said, resting her cheek against the side of Shamal's head. She stroking Shamal's hair. "And you were okay. I didn't want to worry you with that. But then I saw her, and everything, everything just came back. I got so scared that she'd come back to finish me off, to finish you off to get to me. And I lost it."

Victoria hugged Shamal tighter, burying her face in the crook of the other blonde's neck. "I couldn't," she said, her voice muffled. "I couldn't lose you. Not again. I couldn't."

"V-Victoria..."

Shamal was speechless. Of all the things it could have been, she never thought it would be this. As much as she wanted to refute her cousin's claim, what her cousin was saying, it occurred to Shamal that she really didn't know much about Signum's past outside of being Hayate's Wolkenritterand keigo. She'd never asked the samurai about her origins, hoping that Signum would one day feel comfortable enough with her to reveal it on her own. But Signum never did.

"Come with me," Victoria said.

"W-what?"

"Let's leave this place," Victoria said, pulling back to look at her cousin in the face. "Let's get as far away from here as possible. Travel the world."

"Victoria..."

"I promise I'll keep you safe from that woman. I won't let her hurt you."

"But-"

"You're the only family I have left, Shamal," Victoria said, cupping Shamal's cheeks with her hands. "I don't want to lose you again." Victoria leaned in to kiss Shamal on the forehead.

Moonlight glimmered into the room through the open balcony doors now, Shamal finally able to see the sorrowful expression on her cousin's face. It was... heartbreaking.

"I..." Shamal looked away, torn. "I... need more time to think about this."

Victoria was relieved, pulling Shamal in for yet another hug again. "Alright," she said. Her chin rested on top of Shamal's head. Shamal's cheek pressed against Victoria's collarbone.

"I'll wait for another few days for your answer."

The Empress' head healer would never see that malicious grin stretched across her cousin's face.

* * *

_**A/N:**__ For those of you unfamiliar with the non-English words, I have translated them below._

_Deshi = Apprentice/Pupil _

_Keigo = Body Guard _

_Wolkenritter = Cloud Knights (German) _

_For an explanation of Japanese honorifics (eg. [name]-sama), please check out: wiki/Japanese_honorifics_


	11. Parting Ways

**A Samurai's Pledge**

_**A/N**__: And another chapter is up! _

_Believe it or not ladies and gentlemen, but this story is almost done! That being said, from now until the end of the story, I will but putting up polls in my profile to help me determine what I should do after this story is done. The first poll is up now (if not now, very soon), so head over and vote! For those of you who leave unsigned reviews and who would still like to take part in the poll, leave your vote in a review. Happy voting!_

_I've tried to keep everyone as close as possible to their characters in the anime though I'm sure there will be a few OOC moments._

_For those of you who left unsigned reviews, see my replies below:_

_ trumm12345 – Thanks for the review. ^^ Don't you know by now? I love teasing you all with cliffhangers. XD As for Shamal's answer to Victoria, I believe this chapter will answer that question for you. ;)_

_ Sammie-chan89 – Thanks for the review! You'll have to forgive me, I was too lazy to send you a pm. Lol. Yep, the last chapter was pretty short, but I think this one will make up for it. ;)_

_ Love thus story – Thanks for the review. ^^ Indeed, lots of angst. XD Victoria is definitely a schemer, and you'll see what I mean in the coming chapters. Prepare yourself, it will get a lot worse before it gets better. ;)_

_**Disclaimer**__: The characters and the worlds I write in do not belong to me. The stories that I write are intended for entertainment purposes. I do not make any money from them._

* * *

*** ~ Chapter 11: Parting Ways ~ ***

Violent coloured eyes scanned the room, taking in what had been their home for over ten years. Shamal's gaze landed on the bag sitting atop her bed, half stuffed with various pieces of clothing and items she'd collected over the years. She couldn't possibly take everything with her, there was just too much, but she managed to pack what was most important.

Dragging her hand along the bed, her fingers stopped on one particular item that still had yet to be packed. A hand kerchief. It originally belonged to a certain pink haired samurai captain, Shamal having been the one to make it originally for her. Over time and many uses, the hand kerchief wore thin, starting to fray on one of the ends. The head healer made the samurai another, but much to her surprise, it took a lot of convincing before Signum gave up the old one, replacing it with the new one. Shamal never threw out the old hand kerchief, keeping it as a special reminder of their bond. Such a reminder no longer held joy anymore, but pain whenever she looked at it now.

* * *

_~ One hour ago ~_

Shamal stood nervously outside of Signum's bedroom door. A full week had passed at this point, the samurai now healed enough to wander the palace like she usually did before the almost fatal fight. Hayate had yet to clear the captain for active duty however, and as a result, Signum often spent time holed up in her room, brooding. She was in there now, Shamal knowing this as one of her Deshi had just finished checking in on the samurai to make sure everything was alright.

They hadn't spoken since that last time. That very argument still shook Shamal to the core, the blonde clenching and unclenching her fists in indecision. Closing her burning eyes, the healer feeling the beginnings of tears forming, Shamal took a deep breath to settle her nerves.

This had to be done.

She would never forgive herself if she left things the way they currently were. So she raised her shaking hand and knocked.

"Signum... san?"

Shamal mentally chided herself for such a weak introduction. But for the life of her, she just couldn't stop shaking. After a few seconds of getting no reply, Shamal closed her eyes and rested her forehead against the door.

So this was how it was going to be.

"I'm sorry, Signum-san," Shamal said, just loud enough that her words could be heard through the door. Tears threatened to fall, but she forced herself to continue. It was going to be quick, painful, but every much needed to be said.

For both of them.

And then that would be the end of it.

"I know no amount of words or apologies can make up for the hurt and suffering I've caused you from my own ignorance," Shamal continued. "But even so, I am sorry."

Silence.

Shamal chuckled, but her laugh held no mirth.

"I wish there was some way that I could make it up to you, to make things better, but there is not. So I've chosen the next best thing."

A pause.

Shamal swallowed back the lump in her throat, gritting her teeth as her tears fell. With another deep breath, she forced her voice steady.

"I shall bother you no longer, Signum-san," Shamal said. A white knuckled fist clenched at her side. "I will no longer be the reason you shut everyone out, like you did before we became friends."

A muffled sniffle.

"I'm sorry things could not have happened a different way."

And with that said, Shamal walked away from Signum's bedroom door for the last time.

* * *

_Knock. Knock._

"Come in."

Sucking in a shaky breath, Shamal pushed open the door to the Empress' bedroom and walked through. She was greeted with the sight of Hayate sitting at her desk, scowling at the various papers and parchments littering it, looking as if she wanted nothing more than to burn all of them. The Thunder Reaper and the White Devil were also with her, the black assassin lounging on Hayate's couch nearby while the white assassin half sat, half leaned back against the brunette's desk with her arms folded over her chest. All of them looked at Shamal in surprise.

"Shamal?" Hayate said, clearly not expecting a visit from her head healer so soon. "Is..." Hesitation. "Is something wrong?"

Shamal swallowed uneasily, gripping the sealed envelope in her hand hard enough to crinkle it. It was now or never.

"Another request for you, Empress," Shamal said, forcing a weary smile. She held up the envelope in her hand.

That explanation seemed to relax the trio, Hayate resting her forehead against the desk, moaning. "Another one?"

A grumble.

"Can't I just burn them, Shamal? Pleeeeeeease?"

Shamal chuckled audibly, a hand to her mouth. This was one of the few genuine laughs from her lately, and was probably the last. The White Devil reached over and patted the Empress on the head consolingly.

"There, there, Hayate-chan," the White Devil said.

The Thunder Reaper looked at the brunette, her ruby eyes filled with mirth. "Just think of it this way, Hayate-chan," she said. "It would be a lot worse if we did that."

"Ugh."

Shamal took this moment to stride up to Hayate's desk and deposit the parchment in front of the brunette. At that action, the Empress lifted her head long enough to look at the new request, before huffing again, resting her forehead back on the desk, groaning.

"If this is another one of those stupid requests to change the colour of the carpet again..."

Shamal's smile didn't quite reach her eyes. "Ile," the head healer said. "Nothing of that sort. Though it's something which requires your attention, nevertheless."

Hayate straightened in her posture. She looked at Shamal, her eyes narrowing ever so slightly. The two assassins must have noticed it too, both of them also looking at Shamal critically as well.

It was her tone. Something about Shamal's tone didn't sit right with any of them. And the fact that the blonde head attendant refused to meet any of their gazes right now.

After taking a quick glance at the two assassins, the Empress proceeded to tear open the envelope and read the note inside of it.

"You're leaving?!"

Shamal closed her eyes to steady her resolve.

Hayate was flabbergasted. As was the White Devil and Thunder Reaper.

"What?" the Thunder Reaper said. She was on her feet in an instant.

The White Devil took one look at the note in Hayate's hands before her head snapped back towards the blonde head healer, her violet eyes wide.

"I'm here to regretfully inform you Empress, that I'll be stepping down from my position as Head Kusushi and Otomo."

The Empress rose to her feet, albeit a bit shakily. "But... but why?"

Shamal's gaze resided on the floor at her feet. "I am no longer capable of continuing my regular duties," she said quietly. "Not when... when..."

"Surely this is just a passing thing?" the Thunder Reaper said. She took a reluctant step forward towards Shamal. "Things will get better, you just have to-"

"I wish it were so," Shamal interrupted. She looked up at the Thunder Reaper, giving the assassin a watery smile.

"But Shamal-san," the White Devil began.

"I've already made up my mind," the blonde attendant said, turning to the other assassin. "Finieno Shari-san will take over the role as Head Otomo. And Mariel Atenza-san is more than qualified to replace me as Head Kusushi. All of the arrangements have already been made."

"Shamal-san..."

Shamal bowed her head, lowering her gaze again. "Please don't make this harder than it already is."

The blonde flinched slightly when arms wrapped around her and pulled her in for a hug. Shamal quickly relaxed once she realized those arms belonged to a certain brown haired Empress.

"You'll come back and visit, right?"

Shamal smiled, tears running down her cheeks as she hugged Hayate back. They'd been together for years, ever since the Empress was a child. Those were some of the best times of her life. If only it didn't have to end like this.

"Of course," Shamal said thickly.

Both of them knew that to be a lie. Shamal would never be coming back after this. Once she was gone, she was gone. Because Shamal couldn't bear the thought of hurting Signum any longer.

"Take care of Signum-san for me," Shamal said, sniffling as she held her former charge closer.

"I will," Hayate said, her voice heavy with emotion. "Take care of yourself too."

"Hai."

* * *

_~ Present ~_

Fingers curled around worn fabric, Shamal's smile a sad and heartbreaking one. Picking up the tattered hand kerchief, she set it aside on her night table. She'd be better off leaving it. Too many painful memories.

With that finally done, the former Head Healer and Attendant to the Empress closed her bag. Pulling the straps of her bag over her shoulder, Shamal shut the blinds to her room one last time. Taking a deep breath, she made her way towards the door and closed it behind her.

* * *

Signum was quiet.

Sitting in bed, all she could do now was drag her fingers along the broken edges of the sword on her side table. A week had passed since that terrible fight, and Levantine was still in pieces. Was the blade forever broken now? Was that the end of her being a knight?

Signum could have easily gotten another blade. Any of her choosing in fact. But it wouldn't have been right. It wouldn't have fit. Legendary Weapons were something unique, not some turn of the mill tool to be used by any hooligan. Wielders were chosen, not the other way around. And to be chosen was something more special than having a weapon specially crafted for you.

A sigh.

Would things ever be the same?

_KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!_

"Signum, open the door. It's Hayate."

The pink haired samurai turned to look at her bedroom door. It was locked, and had been locked ever since Shamal's Deshi left after checking in on her. As of late, Signum lacked the desire to interact with other human beings, a certain green robed attendant and healer in particular. At times, it was even pressing not to yell at Agito when the fire sprite kept her company. Agito was not here now though, Rein having stolen her away for some mischief or the other. Signum was actually pretty glad about that. The fire sprite had been in a foul mood as of late, and it was without a doubt because of Signum.

"Signum! I know you're in there! Open this door, or I will!"

Signum stared at the door for another few seconds before rising to her feet. But rather than unlock the door, as was demanded of her, by the Empress no less, Signum instead wandered over to the balcony doors and opened them. The brilliant sun was warm in its embrace, temporarily blinding her. So often she brooded in the dark, the sun's light was actually a nice change for her.

"Baka yarou!"

Signum blinked, looking back at her bedroom door. That was a first. Hayate had never used that tone of voice with her before.

"You have five seconds to open this door before I kick it down. I'm not joking, Signum! I'll do it!"

Signum shook her head before turning back to gaze at the capital city. This wasn't the first time someone threatened to kick the door in. In fact, a certain black assassin threatened to do the same days ago, when Signum refused to leave her room for a walk outside. It was an empty threat of course, for soon the Thunder Reaper gave up on yelling through the door and left her be. And there was no doubt in Signum's mind that Hayate would soon do the same.

"So that's your answer, huh? So be it."

There it was. The moment when Hayate realized that-

"Come forth, the wind of snow..."

Or maybe not.

Signum's eyes widened.

"... and become the fletching which falls from the heavens."

A growing rumble.

"Hræsvelgr!"

Signum went ducking for cover as her bedroom door was literally blasted open and torn apart by a burst of magical power so intense, it caused the hairs on the back of her neck to raise on end. Splinters of wood rained down on the samurai captain, along with the rest of her room, Signum's once pristine abode now looking like a battle zone.

"You stupid, stupid samurai!"

Before Signum could make heads or tails of anything, she was roughly grabbed by her collar and thrown up against the nearest wall. Hayate's angry face was mere inches from hers now, the Empress snarling in fury.

"Do you know what you've done?!"

Despite being a head taller than the brunette, Signum couldn't but cower like a small child being scolded by a parent.

"How long were you going to hide in here?! Hmm? How long were you going to act like a spoiled child and push people away!?"

Signum gritted her teeth and looked to the side, avoiding the Empress' gaze.

"Don't you dare look away from me when I'm talking to you!"

Signum was pulled forward a few inches before she was slammed back into the wall again.

A growl.

It was one thing to shout at her. Signum could take all the shouting and yelling that anyone threw at her. But the moment you started physically lashing out at her, you'd be in for a rude awakening when she started to hit back.

"Let me go," Signum said through clenched teeth, her eyes narrowed to nothing but crystal blue slits. There was no leeway in Signum's command. You either did what she said, or paid the consequences of not.

Hayate smirked. Signum was angry? Good. She needed the pinkette to be angry.

"Or what? You'll leave like Shamal?!"

Signum opened her mouth to retort but then froze when her mind processed what the Empress said.

Wait. What? Shamal was leaving?

"_I shall bother you no longer, Signum-san," Shamal said through the door. "I will no longer be the reason you shut everyone out, like you did before we became friends."_

Another smirk from the Empress.

"Oh? You didn't know? Of course not," the brunette mocked. "How could you? Being that you've been in your room the whole time."

The Empress released her hold on the samurai's collar and took a few steps back. That gave Signum the opportunity to straighten herself out and stand up properly.

"Let me get you up to speed on the most recent events here in the Imperial Palace."

A piece of parchment was tossed at Signum, the pinkette catching deftly.

"While you were sulking away in your room, hiding from your problems," Hayate began. "I was not only dealing with the mess you made over a week ago, but that." She waved her hand in the direction of the parchment Signum held.

Signum's eyes widened, the samurai's heart dropping into her stomach as she read the contents of the note. This cursive script she'd recognize anywhere, having seen enough of Shamal's messages to know who wrote them. And the actual words, Shamal announced her resignation from her role as the Empress' Head Attendant and Healer. Not only that, she had chosen to leave the city with no word on if she'd ever return. She'd be leaving tonight.

"I can't even imagine what issues you're trying to sort out right now," Hayate said, snapping Signum out of her shock. "But whatever they are, get over it. Fast."

"But-"

Hayate wouldn't let her finish.

"She loves you, Signum!"

Signum went rigid at that declaration.

"And I know you love her back. All of us can see that! Why can't you!?"

Signum clenched her jaw, the note in her hand crumpling as she made a fist.

"You don't understand!" the samurai exclaimed, all of the anger and hatred she felt before bubbling to the surface again.

"Do you hate her?"

"Pardon?"

"Do you hate Shamal?" Hayate's voice was firm but not condescending.

Signum looked away.

Silence enveloped the pair for minutes, minutes which felt like hours to the samurai.

"Ile."

Signum did not hate Shamal. After days of nothing but contemplation and herself, Signum realized this truth. She could never hate Shamal.

It wasn't Shamal's fault her cousin turned out to be a homicidal maniac who just so happened to kill her previous master because of Levantine. It wasn't like Shamal could pick who her living blood relatives were. It just happened like that. Not to mention, Signum hadn't even know Shamal existed at that time, which was most likely true for Shamal regarding her as well.

It wasn't like Shamal covered for her cousin either. It wasn't like she knew her cousin had killed Signum's master and hid it, getting closer to her, just to mess with her head. Shamal was not that kind of woman. No, Shamal was warm and kind and friendly and had the kindest, biggest heart that Signum had ever known (aside from her immediate family that is).

In spite of knowing of Signum's bloody past, maybe the not finer details of it, but knowing that Signum had killed people before, she accepted the pinkette. Shamal didn't try to change Signum. She didn't try to turn her into something else. She didn't want that. Shamal wanted Signum the way she was.

Slowly, bit by bit, Shamal befriended her. She made Signum feel comfortable, welcome and even proud of who she was. She was the first person to make Signum feel safe, and in doing so, Signum opened up her heart to her.

And now Shamal was leaving.

Because of her.

When Shamal had come to talk to her earlier, Signum didn't have the heart to answer back. What could she say? What should she say after all that had happened? Signum was ashamed of herself.

"_I'm sorry things could not have happened a different way."_

"You're right," Hayate said with a huff. She turned around to leave. "I don't understand."

A look back over her shoulder.

"I don't understand why things happened this way, when it was clear both of you felt the same thing for each other."

Hayate walked away.

"She's leaving because of you, Signum."

Signum sank to the floor on her knees. She looked down at the piece of crumpled parchment in her hand.

"She's leaving because she can't bear the thought of hurting you any longer by being around."

Hayate's voice was nothing but an echo now, resounding from the hallway as she continued on her way.

"And you're letting her leave."

A pause.

"Is that what you really want?"

Signum could only scrunch up the parchment in her hands again.

* * *

_**A/N:**__ I figured that Shari would make a good replacement for Shamal as Head Attendant due to the fact the role of Head Attendant is something like a second-in-command of sorts to Hayate, the Empress. As seen in the StrikerS anime, there are at times where Shari seems to take the role of second-in-command when Hayate is in the field, so that seemed to fit. As for Mariel taking over the role as Head Healer, she was the devices technicians in StrikerS, one of them at least, so I figured that was close enough to 'healing' someone, and put her in that position._

_I realize that __Hræsvelgr is a massive and powerful long range attack, so for the purposes of this chapter, let's just say Hayate held back on it enough to make her point. A watered down version of it. ;)_

_For those of you unfamiliar with the non-English words, I have translated them below._

_Hai = Yes_

_Ile = No_

_Otomo = Attendant _

_Kusushi = Doctor _

_Baka yorou = Idiot (a harsher way of saying it)_

_Hræsvelgr = Corpse Swallower (from Norse Mythology)_

_For an explanation of Japanese honorifics (eg. [name]-sama), please check out: wiki/Japanese_honorifics_


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